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The Montreal Screwjob, also known as the Montreal Incident, was a notorious unscripted professional wrestling incident that occurred on November 9, 1997, at the Survivor Series pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. During the WWF Championship match between Shawn Michaels and champion Bret Hart, WWF owner Vince McMahon and select WWF employees covertly manipulated the predetermined outcome of the match in favor of Michaels without the knowledge nor consent of Hart, causing him to lose the championship.

In 1996, Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels began a rivalry that led to Survivor Series, meeting once at an Iron Man match at WrestleMania XII. A year later in August 1997 Hart won the WWF Champion in a match with The Undertaker at SummerSlam. In early November, Hart, who had performed for the WWF since 1984, agreed to join rival wrestling promotion World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from December 1997. McMahon sought to prevent Hart from leaving the WWF as champion, but Hart was unwilling to lose to Michaels – with whom he had a legitimate feud – at Survivor Series, as it was taking place in his home country of Canada. The match was planned to end in disqualification, causing Hart to retain the title, and then forfeiting it at a later date. Instead, under McMahon's direction, referee Earl Hebner ended the match as Michaels held Hart in the sharpshooter submission hold (Hart's signature move); although Hart did not submit, Michaels was declared the winner by submission and became WWF Champion.

As a result of the screwjob, McMahon and Michaels elicited angry responses from Canadian audiences and others for many years. McMahon was viewed by many fans to have betrayed Hart, who was one of the WWF's longest-tenured and most popular performers at the time. The screwjob impacted the professional wrestling industry in several ways: according to WWE, the incident is considered as one of the beginnings of the Attitude Era, leading to McMahon featuring as a villainous on-screen character on WWF television broadcasts, and has been used as a theme in matches and storylines across the wrestling industry. It was also partly chronicled in the documentary film Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows (1998).

The Montreal Screwjob has garnered a notorious legacy; accounts differ as to who exactly was involved in the plan and the extent of their involvement, while some wrestling fans, performers and bookers believe the incident was an elaborate work executed in collaboration with Hart, which he denies. Hart did not return to the WWE until his induction into the WWE Hall of Fame in April 2006, and he made his next live appearance on WWE programming in January 2010. Hart later said he legitimately reconciled with McMahon and Michaels, and the screwjob was used in a storyline between McMahon and Hart, leading to a match at WrestleMania XXVI.

Background

In 1994, Vince McMahon, the chairman of the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), faced criminal charges alleging that he had been supplying illegal anabolic steroids to his wrestlers. The charges were made due to McMahon's association with WWF physician Dr. George T. Zahorian, who in 1991, was accused of similar crimes. A court case was opened in July 1994, and after an 18-day trial, the jury found McMahon not guilty. In 1992, two years before the trial, McMahon began pushing younger, smaller, more athletic wrestlers to the top of the card in response to the bad press the WWF were receiving. Competition with rival promotions also increased during this time, particularly in 1994 when the WWF's biggest competitor World Championship Wrestling (WCW) signed Hulk Hogan. A year later, WCW launched Monday Night Nitro which aired on TNT, to go head to head with the WWF's Monday Night Raw on the USA network, kick-starting the Monday Night Wars.

Shawn Michaels at a WWF show in England

By 1996, Bret Hart, a 13-year veteran and former member of the Hart Foundation, and Shawn Michaels, a 8-year veteran and former member of The Rockers faction, occupied the main event scene and were considered the best wrestlers in the world. At the Royal Rumble match in January, Michaels entered at number 18 and eliminated 8 men in a winning effort. Per the match stipulation, Michaels challenged the WWF champion, who at the time was Bret Hart, to a match at the main event of WrestleMania XII. During the event on March 31, 1996, Michaels defeated Hart for the WWF title in overtime of their 60-minute Iron man match, which ended in a scoreless draw. Upon the conclusion of the match, Michaels and Hart did not shake hands, leading many to believe that they legitimately despised each other. It was later revealed by Hart that this was a planned spot agreed upon by him and Michaels to get fans, as well as the press, invested in their rivalry.

After WrestleMania, Hart went on a seven-month hiatus, while Michaels defended his title. Around a month into his hiatus, Hart's WWF contract expired. Vince McMahon, along with Jim Ross paid a visit to Hart to discuss his contract and the possibilities of him resigning for the WWF. Although Hart described the conversation as pleasant, he and McMahon were unable to reach a contract agreement. In July that year, McMahon again attempted to resign Hart, but to no success. A few months later in September, Hart was approached by Eric Bischoff, the executive producer of WCW, while filming a guest spot for the Simpsons. Bischoff met Hart at his Los Angeles hotel, and tried to persuade him into joining WCW. As their conversation progressed, Hart made it clear to Bischoff that for him to even consider joining, he would require a lucrative multi-million dollar contract with a much lighter schedule. Two days later, Bischoff handed Hart an official $8.4 million, 3 year contract, that would require him to make 180 appearances each year. Upon receiving the offer, Hart almost immediately informed McMahon of the contract and asked him to either match or surpass it. On October 9, McMahon flew to Hart's home to offer him a 20-year contract worth $10.5 million. Feeling a sense of loyalty to the WWF, Hart accepted the contract and agreed to return on the October 21 episode of Raw, where he signed the official contract just an hour before the show went live. The contract also added that "Should Bret Hart leave the WWF for whatever reason he would receive reasonable creative control in the final 30 days of employment". Michaels, aware of all of this, was not happy with the contract, and expressed his anger towards McMahon, telling him that he would not lose to Hart in their planned rematch at WrestleMania 13.

Bret Hart as WWF champion

At Survivor Series in November, Michaels lost the WWF title to Sycho Sid but recaptured the title on January 19, 1997, at the Royal Rumble. Shortly after this, Michaels vacated the title in February due to a knee injury. He contemplated thoughts of retirement and said that he "had to find his smile" which he "lost" somewhere down the line. Hart doubted the severity of Michaels' injury and deemed it a ruse to avoid losing to him at WrestleMania. After a three and a half month hiatus, Michaels returned to action in late May, and was scheduled to face Hart at the King of the Ring event, but the match was scrapped due to the personal rivalry between the two men. On the day after the King of the Ring, a few hours before the June 16 episode of Raw went on the air, a backstage brawl between Hart and Michaels broke out, as a result of months of backstage arguments. Following the alteration, Michaels asked for his release, citing concerns about an unsafe working environment. McMahon was able to talk Michaels into returning, and by SummerSlam in August, Michaels agreed to serve as the special guest referee for the match between Bret Hart and The Undertaker, which Hart won, becoming the WWF champion in the process.

In late September, the WWF were embroiled in stiff competition with WCW and were not in the best position financially. As a result, McMahon informed Hart that he would not be able to fulfill the terms and conditions of his contract. He advised Hart to reach out to Bischoff for a potential run with WCW, as this would save him money. Hart, not wanting to leave the WWF, tried negotiating with McMahon, however, this would prove fruitless as McMahon remained firm in his decision and refused to consider any alternatives. Hart later reached out to Bischoff who offered him a $7.5 million, 3 year contract that would require him to make 125 appearances per year. After some thought, Hart made the decision to accept Bischoff's offer and join WCW by December 1997. Fearing a repeat of when Madusa dropped the WWF woman's title in a trash bin on a 1996 episode of Nitro, McMahon ordered Hart to drop the belt before he could join WCW. A title match between Hart and Michaels was later scheduled for Survivor Series in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. McMahon had originally planned for Michaels to defeat Hart for the title. However, given Hart's contract clause which gave him reasonable creative control, he refused to drop the belt to Michaels, as the event was taking place in his home country of Canada. McMahon and Hart eventually came to a compromise and created a new finish that would have seen Hart defeat Michaels by disqualification and vacate the title the next night on Raw. Michaels phoned McMahon and expressed his disapproval of the planned finish. Jim Cornette, as well as Triple H, Michaels' best friend, suggested to McMahon that they manipulate the match finish in favor of Michaels without Hart knowing. McMahon approved of the idea, and gathered a few employees to let them in on how the screwjob would occur. He also ordered Michaels and Triple H to feign confusion after the match occurred.

Execution

Vince McMahon

On November 8, 1997, one day before Survivor Series, McMahon met with Pat Patterson and Michaels in a hotel room in Montreal and planned the screwjob.[8] It is unclear how many people knew of the impending betrayal, but McMahon's close aide Gerald Brisco was involved in the planning. Jim Ross has insisted that he did not know the screwjob would take place, although many, including various members of Hart's family, thought he was involved.[23] Ross has stated that Jerry Lawler also did not know about the screwjob beforehand. Hart and Michaels had met with Pat Patterson to discuss the match setup and plan, during which Hart agreed to allow Michaels to put him into the Sharpshooter hold at a time when the referee would be unconscious, as Patterson suggested.[24]

Once the match began, Hart and Michaels brought their performance outside the ring and into the crowd, while being followed by McMahon and WWF officials. As the climax of the match approached, the two wrestlers returned to the ring while WWF officials continued to order more personnel to ringside. Hart's suspicions were first aroused upon noticing that Vince McMahon was not at the announcers' table to perform commentary, and that on-screen commissioner Sgt. Slaughter was also standing at ringside with Vince McMahon. Nevertheless, the match continued. As planned, Michaels pushed Hebner in front of him as Hart jumped from the top turnbuckle, sending all three men to the canvas. Michaels and Hart both got up, but Michaels performed a rake on Hart's eye, sending Hart back to the mat. Michaels then proceeded to grab Hart's legs to execute the Sharpshooter maneuver.

The rest of the match was planned to proceed thus: Hart would grab Michaels's foot and reverse the hold, putting him in the Sharpshooter. Michaels would submit to the hold, but the referee would still be unconscious. Hart would let go of the hold to try to revive the referee, but Michaels would hit Hart with his finisher, Sweet Chin Music, and make the pin. A second referee would then run to the ring with Owen Hart, Jim Neidhart, and Davey Boy Smith following close behind. The second referee would start the count, but Owen and Davey Boy would break the pin. The original referee would then recover and start to make the count, but Hart would kick out, setting up about five more minutes of brawling that would result in a disqualification.

Earl Hebner

At this point, the match director was heard shouting instructions into his headset for Hebner to get up, but Hart did not notice anything amiss. Mike Chioda, the referee who was supposed to run in after Hebner went down, began yelling back that Hebner was not supposed to be up yet. Pat Patterson reacted in a similar way, and Owen Hart and Davey Boy Smith, who were waiting for their cues to run in, remained backstage in a state of confusion. Michaels was then seen by many viewers as having glanced at Hebner as he put Hart in the sharpshooter, which some saw as proof that he was in on the scheme.[8] Contrary to their agreed plan, Michaels tightened the hold and refused to offer his own leg to Hart for the latter to break out of the hold.[28] At that moment, Hebner got to his feet, looked toward timekeeper Mark Yeaton, and shouted, "Ring the bell!" McMahon then elbowed Yeaton hard and yelled, "Ring the fucking bell!" Yeaton rang the bell just as Hart reached forward and grabbed Michaels's leg, which broke the hold and caused Michaels to fall. According to Bret Hart, while he was trying to trip Shawn Michaels's knee, he heard Vince McMahon say, "Ring the bell!" and he described he knew he was screwed right after the referee rang the bell.[

Michaels's theme music then began playing as the ring announcer declared him the winner and the new WWF Champion. Hebner had already exited the ring and was on his way out of the arena. Jim Ross can be heard on commentary asking, "What happened?" A moment later, he says, "Bret Hart gave up in the Sharpshooter."[29] After an initial moment of shock, Hart got to his feet, approached the apron where McMahon was standing and spat directly in his face, while Michaels feigned confusion.[25][28] Michaels was ordered by McMahon to "pick up the damn belt and get the hell out of here!" Michaels left the arena with Brisco and Triple H and the broadcast signal cut off almost immediately after Michaels exited, with the last shot being a tight closeup of the Survivor Series logo above the entranceway.[29] McMahon and most other WWF officials also quickly made their way backstage as an angry Hart smashed cameras, monitors, and ringside equipment.[30] Fans in attendance also began to vent their fury on McMahon and WWF officials; a few even heaped garbage on them and some who were close enough pushed Michaels as he hurried backstage. Owen Hart, Neidhart and Davey Boy came out to the ring and had a conversation with Bret calming him down. Hart proceeded to finger trace "W-C-W" and "I love you" to the cheering fans before returning backstage.

Aftermath

While much of the live Montreal audience immediately understood what had happened and responded angrily, television viewers had been left largely confused as Jim Ross promptly wrapped up the event on commentary and Survivor Series went off the air four minutes ahead of schedule with the parting image of Michaels holding the belt aloft as he disappeared backstage.[31] Rumors and expressions of surprise and shock pervaded the Internet almost immediately after the match ended. Some observers considered it a creative and all-time great match finish.[8] Observers of professional wrestling speculated whether the entire episode would result in WCW becoming the dominant promotion in Canada, where a large majority of fans had remained loyal to WWF, especially as the Hart family was working with the company.[8] As a result of the screwjob, McMahon and Michaels elicited angry responses from Canadian fans and others for many years. These fans felt as though McMahon betrayed Hart, who was one of the longest-tenured talents and a fan favorite at the time.

The Undertaker

Backstage, many wrestlers, including the likes of The Undertaker, Mick Foley, Owen Hart, Jim Neidhert, David Boy Smith, among others, expressed their frustrations with the outcome of the event. Michaels and Triple H were questioned as to whether they were in on the plan, to which they denied any involvement. Upon arriving backstage, McMahon locked himself in his office with Pat Patterson and a couple of his associates. A few minutes later, an angry Hart attempted to break into McMahon's office, but was unable to gain access. Hart then addressed the stunned locker room, voicing his frustrations and disappointment, before heading to the shower. The Undertaker, who had been watching the screwjob unfold, got up from where he was seated, and made his way to McMahon's office door where he began loudly banging. McMahon opened the door and was told by The Undertaker that he had to apologize to Hart. After The Undertaker had escorted McMahon and his associates to the locker room area, Hart was informed of McMahon's arrival by his fellow wrestlers, and not too long after Hart exited the shower, an altercation broke out between him and McMahon. The alteration ended with Hart angrily punching McMahon in the face giving him a black eye. Although a camera crew were backstage, they were unable to film the altercation between Hart and McMahon after Hart had asked them to leave the locker room area. They did, however, film some of the ensuing drama before and after the altercation, and used the footage in a 1998 documentary called Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows.

A day after Survivor Series, Eric Bischoff announced that Hart would be joining WCW, and the new World order (nWo), the most popular faction at the time. Hart made his debut on the December 15 episode of Nitro, where he referenced the Montreal Screwjob in a promo. Almost a month prior, McMahon had a sit-down interview with Jim Ross on the November 17 episode of Raw, where he was questioned about the screwjob. Throughout the interview McMahon expressed disappointment in Hart, believing he was at fault for what happened, and at one point stated, "Bret screwed Bret. I have no sympathy whatsoever for Bret". Many journalists cite this moment as the birth of the villainous authoritarian character "Mr. McMahon" that Vince McMahon would portray after receiving fan backlash as direct result of the interview and his involvement in the screwjob. Elsewhere, Michaels' WWF title run lasted around four months, before he lost it to Stone Cold Steve Austin at WrestleMania 14 on March 29, 1998. Michaels retired after the match due a serious back injury he suffered a few months prior at the 1998 Royal Rumble during a match with The Undertaker. Hart also retired from professional wrestling in 2000 after suffering an injury during a match with Goldberg in December 1999 at Starcade.

Resolution

In 1998, the WWF introduced an edgier, more offensive product, one that was deviant from the previous theme of good vs bad, as storylines became increasingly complex. From late 1997 to 2001, a period dubbed "The Attitude Era", the WWF often won the ratings against WCW in the Monday Night Wars, with Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock emerging as the top guys during this period. McMahon also played a pivotal role in the WWF winning the ratings, as he feuded with Stone Cold Steve Austin in a highly acclaimed boss vs employee storyline. This ultimately culminated in McMahon purchasing WCW in 2001.

After weeks of speculation, WWE.com announced in late August 2005 that Hart and WWE had agreed to collaborate on a DVD project chronicling Hart's wrestling career. In subsequent interviews, Hart attributed his decision to his desire to be remembered for his storied career that spanned two decades.[50] The project, which had been given the working title of Screwed: The Bret Hart Story, was renamed Bret "Hit Man" Hart: The Best There Is, the Best There Was, the Best There Ever Will Be.[10] In the 2005 DVD chronicling his career, both Hart and Bischoff denied that his holding the WWF title was a factor in WCW's desire to sign him. While McMahon claimed that there was mutual regret, Hart defended his actions and asserted that he stood by what he did. Hart was interviewed about the DVD and his career by Todd Grisham on the November 16, 2005, edition of Byte This!, marking Hart's first appearance on WWE programming since the Montreal Screwjob.[51][52]

Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart at Raw on January 4, 2010

Hart's refusal to lose to Michaels in Montreal has been criticized by others such as Ric Flair, who asserted that it was Hart's responsibility to drop the title belt of a company he was leaving[53] (Flair himself was WCW World Heavyweight Champion when he left the company and signed with the WWF in 1991, even appearing on television with the NWA/WCW belt, but also dropped the WWF Championship to Hart on October 12, 1992, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan at a house show). Hart, however, maintains that he was prepared to lose the title anywhere and to anyone, except to Michaels in Canada given that, during 1997, his "Hitman" character had been built up as a great Canadian hero. As his contract with WWF did not expire for four more weeks, Hart asserts that there was plenty of time and several other opportunities for him to drop the title. Several accounts claim that McMahon had originally proposed that Hart drop the title at December's In Your House pay-per-view in Springfield, Massachusetts, or at January's Royal Rumble in San Jose, California.[16]

However, in 2009 Bret Hart stated in an interview with Sky Sports that he will forgive Michaels, if Shawn apologizes first, saying "For me I don't really have much issue with it anymore. If you asked me that up until probably about a year ago I'd have probably said something different. But I've cooled off a bit now. I don't want to carry it around anymore. If he wanted to apologize I would accept it. I'd move on but I wouldn't forget it." He also put over the Michaels-Undertaker match at WrestleMania 25, saying he was proud of both men's efforts and that despite his personal feelings towards Michaels, he always had the utmost respect for his abilities.[57] Similarly, Michaels has commended Hart's abilities, calling him a "sheer joy" to work with in the ring.[58][59]

Bret Hart in the WWE in 2010

Bret returned on the January 4, 2010, episode of Raw, and promptly called out Michaels in order to bury the hatchet. Hart and Michaels then aired their grievances with one another while recognizing that their Ironman match at WrestleMania XII ought to be the highlight of their relationship rather than the Montreal Screwjob. The pair shook hands and Michaels turned as if to deliver Sweet Chin Music, but instead chose to embrace Hart. While many cast doubts on the sincerity of their reconciliation, Hart has confirmed that it was indeed genuine, as did Michaels,[7] and acknowledged that he felt that Michaels changed as a person, for the better. Later in the night, a storyline between Hart and McMahon began with the two appearing to have their own reconciliation only to have McMahon subsequently kick Hart in the gut: in real life, Hart and McMahon have been on slight speaking terms since 2002, when McMahon called Hart during his recovery from a stroke.[6] The feud culminated in an encounter at WrestleMania XXVI, which saw Hart defeat McMahon in a match that involved the Hart family.[62] After the match, Hart would continue to periodically work televised events for WWE.[63][64] Hart briefly held the WWE United States Championship in May 2010, a title he had held four times previously, all during his tenure in WCW. It was Hart's first championship reign in WWE since the Montreal Screwjob.[65]

Conspiracies

A number of conspiracy theories have been proposed to explain the Montreal Screwjob. One of the most popular theories is that the screwjob was a scripted event where Hart knew and consented to the details of the plan. Proponents of this theory believe the screwjob to be a storyline designed to build the villainous authoritarian character "Mr. McMahon", turn Michaels into a hated heel, and transform Hart into a sympathetic figure. Additional evidence of a work occurring include the involvement of a camera crew backstage, the open discussion of the screwjob by the WWF, and the conflicting recalls of events by Michaels, Hart and Hebner.

Impact and legacy

The Montreal Screwjob remains one of the most high-profile double-crosses in the history of professional wrestling and the first heavily publicized professional wrestling double-cross since Wendi Richter lost the WWF Women's Championship to a masked Fabulous Moolah following a money dispute on November 25, 1985. It is perhaps the most controversial match in the history of the WWF.[45] The Montreal Screwjob's impact defined later storylines and rivalries, such as those between McMahon and Stone Cold Steve Austin[46] and the Rock and Mankid in 1997 and 1998.[47] Since then, professional wrestling storylines, including some storylines written by WWE, continue to refer to the screwjob whenever a title match ends under controversial circumstances.[48]

See also

• Chris Benoit double-murder and suicide
• United States v. McMahon
• History of WWE