Vince McMahon nixed idea for WWE SmackDown's debut episode at short notice, Vince Russo says (Exclusive)

Vince McMahon was WWE's creative figurehead when SmackDown debuted as a weekly show on August 26, 1999. Vince Russo, the company's co-head writer at the time, recently explained why his former boss canceled a storyline before the show.

On July 14, 1999, horror movie The Blair Witch Project premiered in cinemas in the United States. Russo and fellow writer Ed Ferrara produced a parody skit of the film alongside wrestlers The Blue Meanie and Stevie Richards. A vignette, titled The Blonde B*tch Project, aired on the August 23, 1999, episode of RAW before the story was abruptly nixed.

Russo spoke to EC3 and host Dr. Chris Featherstone on Sportskeeda's The Wrestling Outlaws about the original idea. He recalled how McMahon abandoned plans to air another segment on SmackDown because he had doubts about the movie's success.

"We bring Vince The Blonde B*tch Project, and he goes, 'What is this?' 'Vince, it's The Blonde B*tch Project.' 'I don't know what that is.' 'Vince, there's a movie coming out, The Blair Witch Project.' We tell him the whole marketing campaign, the whole nine yards. His exact words to me, 'Nobody's gonna go see that movie,'" Russo said. [3:21 – 3:39]

Watch the video above to hear Russo's amusing story about McMahon and Kiss co-founder Gene Simmons.

Vince Russo explains WWE's Blair Witch Project parody

Despite Vince McMahon's reservations, The Blair Witch Project became one of the most successful independent films of all time. The movie's marketing team got people talking by posting cryptic videos online, which gave Vince Russo the idea to create a WWE spoof.

The video would have seen Stevie Richards portray Rena Mero, aka Sable, who was involved in a lawsuit with WWE at the time. However, the full segment was never released.

"It was when Rena Mero was suing the WWE, and, bro, The Blair Witch Project was coming out like that weekend," Russo said. "Do you remember what was going on with that, Chris? There was a whole campaign online. People didn't know if it was a shoot or if it was real. The PR was unbelievable for that movie, right?" [2:40 – 3:07]

During his time in WWE, Russo wanted the on-screen product to be viewed as a compelling television show rather than a wrestling-only program. He and Ed Ferrara left the company in October 1999 to join WCW.

Please credit Sportskeeda's The Wrestling Outlaws and embed the video if you use quotes from this article.

About the author

Danny Hart is a journalist who has been reporting on pro wrestling (WWE) at Sportskeeda since 2017. He grew up as a massive fan of football/soccer and wrestling, leading him to pursue a career in sports journalism.

Before assuming his current role, Hart worked as a football writer at Goal.com between 2009 and 2016. He prides himself on writing original content that is fact-based and highly accurate. Hart thoroughly proofreads his work before submitting it and relies only on credible sources for information.

Hart’s favorite pro wrestler is The Undertaker. He admires the 2022 WWE Hall of Famer’s ability to reinvent his character and remain relevant across his decades-long career. If given the keys to WWE’s creative department, he would bring back The Phenom for a farewell bout against AJ Styles in a stadium full of fans. Not only that, but he would love to have the multi-time world champion’s greatest rivals seated at ringside for the spectacle.

When not watching and covering sports, Hart enjoys long-distance running, playing video games, and listening to audiobooks and podcasts.

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Edited by Danny Hart