A new Netflix documentary about Vince McMahon has shed light on a vile storyline he pitched for his own daughter.
The docuseries, Mr. McMahon, has sparked intense reactions across social media as it explores McMahon’s controversial life both on and off screen.
Watch the trailer below:McMahon, who faces multiple lawsuits related to sexual misconduct, has since criticized the documentary.
He stated that key information was “misinterpreted or left out entirely” to intentionally mislead viewers.
The series features interviews with wrestling icons such as Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Hulk Hogan, delving into McMahon’s rise to power and his time at the helm of WWE.
It also touches on the hush-money investigation that led to McMahon’s resignation as WWE CEO in 2022.
In 2023, McMahon returned to WWE as a board member, but stepped down earlier this year after a lawsuit was filed against him, former WWE executive John Laurinaitis, and WWE, per the Daily Mail.
The lawsuit, brought by Janel Grant, alleges she was a victim of sex trafficking. McMahon has denied all accusations.
The producers of Mr. McMahon noted that most interviews were conducted before the allegations became public in January 2024.
The documentary acknowledges the investigation with a scene showing an empty chair, accompanied by text that reads: “After the allegations became public, Vince McMahon canceled his final interviews for this series.”
Amid the controversies surrounding McMahon's career, shocking storylines were a regular feature of WWE programming, as reported by News.com.au.
However, one particularly disturbing angle involving his own family never made it to air, as it was rejected by his daughter, Stephanie McMahon.
The former WWE Women’s Champion revealed the details of the scrapped storyline for the first time in the Netflix documentary.
In 2006, while pregnant with her first child with WWE legend Paul “Triple H” Levesque, Stephanie was approached by her father with a provocative storyline idea: Vince McMahon himself would be revealed as the father of her baby in a scripted WWE angle.
Stephanie, horrified by the suggestion, immediately shut it down. “My dad did approach me about wanting to be the father of my baby in the storyline for TV, which was actually only the second time I’ve said ‘no’ to him for something he wanted to do,” Stephanie said in the documentary.
“That one was just a little too gross, actually. It was completely disgusting and I don’t find the entertainment value in it at all.”
She explained her reasons for rejecting the idea, saying: “And he’s actually my father, so how could I even play that out? I can’t fake kiss my dad like we were in love or something. It’s just revolting all the way around.”
Despite her refusal, Vince McMahon didn’t give up easily. He returned with a new idea: Stephanie’s brother, Shane McMahon, would be written into the storyline as the father of her child.
“Then he came up with the idea of Shane to be the father of my baby - my brother,” she added.
“Again, I said ‘no.’ I know that happens in this world, but it’s not going to happen with us. I can’t do that. It’s too much.”
While McMahon participated in the making of the documentary, he has distanced himself from the final product, criticizing the portrayal of his character.
“Unfortunately, based on an early partial cut I’ve seen, this doc falls short and takes the predictable path of conflating the ‘Mr. McMahon’ character with my true self, Vince,” McMahon tweeted.
“A lot has been misinterpreted or left out entirely in an effort to leave viewers intentionally confused. The producers use typical editing tricks with out-of-context footage and dated sound bites to distort the viewers’ perception and support a deceptive narrative,” he concluded.
