Bray Wyatt’s relationship with Vince McMahon apparently went way deeper than simply wrestler and boss, because Matt Hardy says the two developed an almost “father-son” dynamic behind the scenes in WWE.
During a discussion on his podcast, Hardy was asked how Windham Rotunda handled criticism from McMahon. According to Hardy, criticism from Vince could hit Bray particularly hard because WWE was basically the only major wrestling system he had ever known. Hardy said the relationship between the two was unlike what Vince had with many other wrestlers.
“I mean, I think the Vince stuff was tough. I know I’ve talked about this. Him and Vince had a very interesting relationship. Almost like a father-son relationship in some ways.”
Hardy believes part of that came from Bray growing up professionally inside WWE. Vince wasn’t simply another promoter Bray worked for along the way. For most of his career, he was the boss.
“And I feel like that probably came to be because he’d only known the WWE system. So, like, Vince was the only boss he’d ever had.”
That created a pretty wild emotional dynamic. Hardy said McMahon could make Bray feel like a million bucks when he loved something, but if Vince wasn’t happy, Bray felt that too.
“So, I feel like there’s times where Vince shows you all this love, but then if you do something that he doesn’t necessarily like or he disagrees with, then he’s really tough on you like a father in many ways.”
And when Vince was angry with Bray, Hardy said Windham didn’t just shrug it off and move on. It could genuinely get to him.
“And I feel like they, more than a lot of wrestlers that work underneath Vince, they had like this very weird, almost like father-son relationship. And if Vince was mad at him, he’d be very sad and, like, disappointed, like, ‘Oh my God, it didn’t make him happy,’ or whatever.”
That doesn’t mean Bray always took everything from Vince quietly either. Hardy said there were also moments when Windham became completely frustrated with McMahon.
“And there’d be times at him where he’d just be totally upset with him.”
The flip side was just as extreme. When Vince was sold on Bray’s ideas, Hardy said McMahon could become one of his biggest supporters, praising his creativity and trying to put him in the strongest possible position. For Hardy, that push and pull is exactly why the relationship felt so personal.
“But there were also times where Vince treated him so good and he wanted to move him into the best spot possible, and he would love his stuff and he would call him a genius and say that was brilliant and this was great.”
“And it was just—it was interesting. They had—it feels like their relationship was deeper than just, like, boss-employee. It was almost like personal, where he was kind of like a father figure to Bray in some ways.”
Hardy was then asked whether Vince actually appreciated just how creative Bray was despite all of their ups and downs. On that point, Hardy didn’t hesitate for a second.
“Yeah. No, absolutely. He definitely greatly appreciated his depth when it came to creativity. I have no doubts about that.”
Bray Wyatt spent years being praised, criticized, reinvented and sent back to the drawing board, but Hardy’s story paints a much more complicated picture of what was happening behind the curtain. Vince wasn’t just the guy approving or killing ideas—his opinion meant something deeply personal to Bray, and that made every high and low between them hit that much harder.
What do you make of Matt Hardy describing Vince McMahon as almost a father figure to Bray Wyatt? Do you think that explains some of the emotional ups and downs Wyatt experienced in WWE? Leave your feedback in the comments below.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
