The Undertaker was one of WWE’s most loyal stars, but even he came close to walking away when WCW was throwing around guaranteed money and WWE was struggling to stay afloat.
Speaking on his Six Feet Under podcast, Undertaker opened up about how difficult life had become during the height of the Monday Night War. WCW had the hotter product, more mature storylines and enough money to sign talent simply to keep them away from WWE. Meanwhile, WWE’s roster was working a brutal schedule without seeing much financial reward.
“We were going through such an incredibly difficult time. They were down there doing really cutting-edge stuff. I don’t know, more mature, I guess, for no better term—mature storylines and stuff that was much more mainstream.”
Undertaker admitted WWE’s creative direction had stalled. The company was still relying on exaggerated characters that were no longer connecting with the audience, while WCW was presenting something that felt fresher.
“We had all of these—I know this will sound funny coming from a character—but we had these really just over-the-top characters that weren’t really resonating well with the audience. Again, business was horrible. The direction at the time was horrible.”
Kevin Nash, who had already left WWE for WCW, directly encouraged Undertaker to follow him. Undertaker did not dismiss the pitch. He listened because the financial difference was impossible to ignore.
“I remember talking with Kevin Nash. He’s like, ‘Mark, man, you need to make that jump now. This is the kind of money they’re handing out, and I think you could do well down here.’”
“I listened to it. I would be lying if I didn’t think like, ‘Wow, that’s—’”
At that point, Undertaker said WWE stars were working almost nonstop and still struggling to survive financially. WCW was offering contracts that could have immediately solved Undertaker’s money problems and pulled him out of debt.
“At the time, we’re working 20, 25 days a month and barely making enough money to survive. It was difficult.”
“I knew that they were down there giving money away just so that talent wouldn’t be available to WWE. So I listened and, honestly, I considered it.”
Despite the money, Undertaker could not forget how WCW had treated him earlier in his career. Before becoming The Undertaker, he was told he would never become a draw in professional wrestling. That rejection remained personal.
“I’ll never forget—and although the same people weren’t in charge at WCW at this point—I’ll never forget being told that you’ll never draw money in this business. That really struck a nerve with me.”
Vince McMahon was not completely convinced by Undertaker at first either, but WWE still gave him the opportunity that changed his life. “I knew that they were down there giving money away just so that talent wouldn’t be available to WWE. So I listened and, honestly, I considered it.”
“The one guy that believed in giving me a chance—because Vince wasn’t completely sold on me either—but the one guy that gave me a chance was Vince and the WWE.”
“That meant more to me than the instant money that I could’ve made, which could’ve got me out of debt and all of those things.”
He also believed WWE would eventually recover. Undertaker feared that taking the money and leaving would result in regret once the company found its footing again. Undertaker ultimately decided that he owed McMahon and WWE his loyalty during the company’s worst period. His final decision was to reject the money and remain part of what he believed would eventually become something massive.
“I knew I had confidence in the company, and I had confidence in Vince that the ship would right itself. And I would be down there, and I would be miserable because I had made a poor decision.”
“Vince believed in me, and I felt obligated to stand by him even when business was so bad.”
“I was just like, ‘You know what? It’s a great deal, but I can’t do it. I gotta stay here and I gotta be part of something that’s gonna be huge.’”
Undertaker’s gamble paid off. WWE eventually defeated WCW, and his decision to stay cemented him as one of the most important performers in company history.
Would The Undertaker have reached the same legendary status if he had taken WCW’s money? Leave your feedback in the comments.
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