The Controversial Reason Why This WWE Star Couldn't Stand The Undertaker

If one was to ask most fans how they would describe WWE Hall of Famer The Undertaker, it would likely involve a lot of gushing about his longevity, his commitment to the gimmick, his classic matches with Shawn Michaels, his locker room leadership, and the way he carried himself backstage. Of course, some of those aspects, namely the latter, are also reasons why some fans and wrestlers thumb their noses at Undertaker. Indeed, while his locker room presence was revered by many in wrestling for his upholding of certain backstage codes, customs, and norms, others saw that as a sign that 'Taker took things a bit too seriously, and could at times be cruel. This was especially in the case in regards to the notorious Wrestler's Court, a makeshift wrestling kangaroo court that saw 'Taker and other veterans pass judgment on fellow wrestlers on things that ranged from the miniscule to the important.

Sometimes, however, Undertaker's justice took place away from wrestler's court and in the actual wrestling ring. That's at least what many believe regarding a February 2003 episode of "SmackDown," which featured a segment involving Taker, Paul Heyman, and Chris Kanyon. A quick read of the segment makes it come across as silly, with Kanyon, the former WCW star, emerging from a box doing a Boy George impression before Undertaker lays him out with a beatdown that culminates with a chair shot. But actually watching the segment gives away that it's much more than a simple beat down angle; there's a prolonged nature in Taker's attack on Kanyon, and viciousness in the chair shots he gives to Kanyon's back and, ultimately, his head, that makes one think that this whole thing was designed to humiliate Kanyon.

One person who definitely believed that was none other than Kanyon himself. The former WWE and WCW star, who tragically passed away at the age of 40 in 2010, openly discussed the "SmackDown" segment in his memoir, believing that then-WWE Chairman Vince McMahon scripted the segment to make a fool out of him, with Undertaker acting on McMahon's orders. Kanyon further theorized that McMahon set out to do so after learning that Kanyon was gay, a factor that Kanyon believes also led to WWE firing him a year later. The Vice TV series "Dark Side of the Ring" would call attention to this story in their episode on Kanyon in September 2021, including showing the infamous chair shot.

For a long time, it was thought that Undertaker would never address the situation, given his unwillingness to venture outside of character throughout most of his career. But things changed after 'Taker finally walked away from wrestling, with the "Deadman" instead giving fans an up close and personal look at his career via the "Last Ride" docuseries, and his podcast "Six Feet Under." And it was the latter platform where 'Taker finally discussed the Kanyon incident in 2024. While he made no mention of whether McMahon was attempting to humiliate Kanyon, Taker denied that the chair shot had anything to do with Kanyon's sexual orientation, claiming that he had no idea Kanyon was even gay until years later. He also stated that the chair shot was no different than any other chair shot he dished out at the time, though he did express regret for delivering them so hard in the wake of new information regarding concussions and CTE.