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With Nexflix's next great documentary series, Mr. McMahon, set to debut on the platform later this week on September 25th, the former Chairman of the Board, Vince McMahon, has decided to get out in front of the series with a pretty aggressive statement on the Bill Simmons-produced production. Why? Because what fans will see on television isn't what many of the participants intended when they filmed their segments for the show.
“I don't regret participating in this Netflix documentary. The producers had an opportunity to tell an objective story about my life and the incredible business I built, which were equally filled with excitement, drama, fun, and a fair amount of controversy and life lessons,” McMahon wrote. “Unfortunately, based on an early partial cut I've seen, this doe falls short and takes the predictable path of conflating the “Mr. McMahon” character with my true self, Vince. The title and promos alone make that evident. A lot has been misrepresented 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 soundbites, etc., to distort the viewers' perception and support a deceptive narrative. In an attempt to further their misleading account, the producers use a lawsuit based on an affair I ended as evidence that I am, in fact, “Mr. McMahon.” I hope the viewer will keep an open mind and remember that there are two sides to every story.”
While it's easy to instantly throw away what McMahon has to say as an angry man who will likely see his character besmirched even further amid a legacy-killing lawsuit and federal investigation, there is some truth to what he had to say, as the documentary series really was meant to be more about the difference between the character he played weekly on RAW or SmackDown, as opposed to a brutal takedown built around his sudden fall from grace.
Had the documentary been a hit piece all along, McMahon's camp almost certainly wouldn't have contributed to the series, and many of the wrestlers and personalities involved likely would have passed, too. Still, it's not like Netflix or anyone involved in the doc is making up McMahon's fall from grace, as he truly did this to himself.
Jim Ross is very interested to see Vince McMahon's Netflix doc
Speaking of Mr. McMahon, the documentary, not the disgraced executive, Jim Ross, who was not asked to participate in the series, did comment on it on his Grilling JR podcast. While Ross isn't sure how the series will shake out, as he didn't quite know how much say McMahon had on the project, he assured fans that if Simmons was allowed to tell the story truthfully, fans will be in for one heck of a ride.
“Well, it all depends on how much involvement in a production sense that Vince is going to have on the project. As long as he lets it flow and — look, he’s a controversial guy, and this is a h*ll of a story. I can tell you that Bill Simmons is really talented. His 30 for 30s, and all the things that he’s accomplished are significant… I’m anxious to see how much in-depth on the production side and, the storytelling side, the screenwriting side that Vince is going to have in this thing. He could make it or break it. And there’s always a way at the end to make a guy whole, to some degree. I expect that to happen here, but boy, what a h*ll of a story,” Ross explained via 411 Mania.
“I mean, if you’re a storyteller like Simmons and the other cat, you’ve hit the storytelling gold. Because you can’t write this stuff. This doesn’t seem feasible, but it is. It’s real. So how real it stays, and how accurate the storytelling is, is everything about the success of this. You know, our beloved wrestling fans will know this story as well as the storytellers, a lot of them will. So I’m excited to see it. I’ll be sure as h*ll watching it. I’m intrigued by it. Because I’m like you, Conrad. There was a point in time when I thought it would never occur, right? Never make air. But we were wrong on that one.”
Fortunately for Ross and, for that matter, fans of professional wrestling and entertainment drama, McMahon isn't involved in the actual production of the series, as the director, Chris Smith, has already said they recontextualized what they filmed a few years ago to touch on his recent fall from grace, removal from WWE's Board of Directors, and effective removal from the promotion's on-screen product. The production likely won't be perfect, as they've had to work with what they have without the ability to secure new interviews with many of their principles. Still, considering everything that has happened, it's safe to say fans and curious observers alike should still tune into the show, as in the words of JR, they are in for “one h*ll of a story.”
