John Heidenreich is owning up to what went wrong at the end of his WWE run. The former WWE Superstar admitted that his release came after bad choices, missed flights, lateness, and drug use while he was still in a major spot with the company.
During his interview with Chris Van Vliet, Heidenreich was asked why WWE released him. He did not blame politics, creative, or anyone else. Instead, he said the problem came down to decisions he made at the time.
“Some of it was my bad decisions at the time. I was showing up late some shows.”
Heidenreich said he was still in a good position when things started falling apart. He had been paired with Animal as part of Legion of Doom and had held the WWE Tag Team Titles, but he admitted he did not fully understand how lucky he was.
“I didn’t realize how lucky I was and the opportunity I had at the time. I mean, I worked my whole life to make it football. I really didn’t make it to that level. Then I get in wrestling and I get to that level and here I am.”
Heidenreich explained that he had an ear infection at one point and could not wrestle, but he made it clear that was not the real reason WWE let him go.
“I had an ear infection issue where I couldn’t wrestle. But that wasn’t the reason. They sent me home and released me a couple days after that. It was a buildup of probably some just me being stupid and then them probably thinking, man, this guy’s out of hand.”
Heidenreich said WWE may have been hoping the release would force him to get himself straight and possibly come back later. He admitted he never truly made the effort to return.
“Maybe release him and he either gets himself straight and comes back, which I never really tried to go back. I should have. I wanted to a bunch of times.”
Heidenreich said people told him he should go to a WWE house show and speak to someone, but pride got in the way.
“People would tell me, ‘You need to go to this house show or show and talk to somebody.’ And I think my pride was too big. It was stupid.”
When asked directly whether the bad decisions included drug use, Heidenreich did not dodge the question.
“Yeah, some drug use.”
Heidenreich explained that the drug use contributed to him being late. He said he would sometimes stay out all night before travel, miss flights, and then have to buy another ticket just to get where he needed to be.
“Basically, that would cause me to be late, you know. Sometimes I would miss my flight from WWE and have to buy another flight to get there. I was never messed up at the building where I screwed up in a match, but at home I may have stayed out the night before I was going to travel.”
Heidenreich said pain pills were part of the problem, along with other substances. He also said personal issues at home played into how he justified it to himself, though he stressed that it was not an excuse.
“Yeah. I mean, it was stupid, man. I had some issues with my relationship with my wife, but that’s still no excuse. But at the time I used it. Well, I’m medicating myself. I don’t feel good, so I’m going to do this because I wouldn’t have to feel so hurt, you know, but that was still stupid.”
Heidenreich said he should have asked for help instead of trying to bury the problem.
“I should have went and talked to somebody or something.”
Heidenreich also admitted WWE had policies in place back then that could have helped him, but he did not want to admit he had a problem.
“They even had the policy back then. I could have went and said, ‘Hey, man. This is what’s going on,’ and they would have helped you, you know, which I didn’t want to rehab. I just didn’t want to say it.”
Heidenreich said WWE officials were not blind to those kinds of issues because they had seen it before.
“They know and guys are doing — I mean, they’re not stupid, man. They’ve seen it all at WWE.”
When asked how long he has been clean now, Heidenreich said it has been about a decade.
“About 10 years, probably at least.”
Heidenreich then opened up about pain pills specifically and said the addiction was brutal.
“Pain pills was a terrible addiction, man. I wouldn’t wish that on anybody.”
Heidenreich said he first started taking them because he was hurt, but it eventually became something much bigger than he wanted.
“I started out taking them when I was hurt. I mean, I didn’t want to get into taking them all the time.”
Heidenreich said he took Lortab or Lorcet early on, then Percocet, and later Roxys after leaving WWE. He also said he used Suboxone while trying to quit.
“Lortab at first. I think it was Lortab or Lorcet, then maybe Percocet, and then after I left there I was taking Roxys, you know. Then I got on Suboxone to try to quit them, you know, then back and forth.”
Heidenreich said he avoids pain pills now, even when he might physically need them, because he does not want to risk going back down that road.
“I don’t — I mean, I probably need them now, but I don’t want to take them. It’s just like, I don’t want — because you know, after a surgery you might need them, but even when I had my leg broken, they may have gave me some in the hospital, but I didn’t take any when I went home because I didn’t want them.”
Heidenreich said he knows how dangerous that cycle can be, and he would rather push through pain than start taking them again.
“It’s like, man, I don’t want to start taking them things again. If I can get through it, I’ll make it.”
Heidenreich’s story is a heavy reminder of how quickly things can fall apart, even when someone has a major spot in WWE. He is not blaming anyone else for his release, and now he says he has been clean for around 10 years while trying to move forward with his life and wrestling appearances.
What do you think about Heidenreich taking responsibility for his WWE release and opening up about his addiction battle? Please share your thoughts and feedback in the comments section below.
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