Matt Hardy Details Dexter-Inspired Idea He Pitched In WWE That Vince McMahon 'Hated'

In the fall of 2017, Jeff Hardy sustained a torn rotator cuff that would keep him out of in-ring action for several months. Amidst his absence, his brother and tag team partner Matt Hardy shifted to singles competition, including a notable feud against Bray Wyatt. It was during this time that Matt also introduced his "Woken" gimmick to WWE, which he had hoped to still involve Jeff in.

On a recent edition of "The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy," Matt revealed a TV-inspired pitch he made to then-WWE CEO Vince McMahon that would have seen Jeff appear as a manifestation in Matt's mind. However, it never came to fruition on WWE television.

"I was starting the program with Bray Wyatt and there was a point where Vince asked if there were some supplemental things I could add in that could help ['Woken'] Matt Hardy," Matt said. "And I said, 'Well, I have this idea. Vince, have you ever watched the show Dexter?' And he's like, 'Dexter, not familiar with it.' So Dexter's dad was like his north star; he was like his guiding light. Dexter's dad would appear and he would give him advice, but really it was Dexter internally thinking this thing. It was almost like he was his conscience or his soul.

"I said, 'What if we do a thing where 'Woken' Matt is here, he's in this dilemma, and then all of a sudden Jeff is there and he's talking to him. He's hurt. He has the shoulder sling on, whatever else. Someone walks in the room and they see me talking to someone, but there's no one there.' Jeff is just a figment of my imagination."

According to Matt, McMahon never explicitly turned down the idea, but his reaction suggested that he "hated" it. As such, Jeff largely remained off of programming until he made a cameo in Matt's Ultimate Deletion match against Wyatt in March 2018.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.