The Undertaker Reveals the Most Nerve-Wracking Conversation with Vince McMahon

The Undertaker put his body on the line for the enjoyment of fans and most of them always appreciated that. This commitment has earned him legendary status, especially after he reinvented himself. This was most apparent with his American Badass persona and he admitted he was very nervous about pitching the idea of the character to Vince McMahon.

The Deadman was a fixture of WWE television for over thirty years, and he continued to be a highlight of WWE television since the early 90s. During the early 2000s, he introduced The American Badass gimmick, which breathed new life into his career.

The American Badass gimmick lasted from 2000 to 2003, with a brief appearance during his feud with AJ Styles back in 2020 and his NXT appearance last year and remains a fan favorite even now.

During an episode of his Six Feet Under podcast, The Undertaker talked about pitching the transition from his Deadman character to the American Badass persona to Vince McMahon in 2000. He admitted that he was particularly nervous about the pitch, not about the debut itself but about presenting the idea to McMahon. Undertaker expected McMahon to dismiss the idea, anticipating a response along the lines of, “There’s no way you’ll be fine, forget what everyone else is saying.”

When Undertaker met with McMahon to explain his reasoning, he was surprised by McMahon’s positive reaction. McMahon responded enthusiastically, saying it was a great idea. Undertaker was initially skeptical, thinking McMahon might be setting him up for a joke or about to change his mind at the last moment.

“That was probably what I was most nervous about. Not the night that I’d debut it but actually telling Vince, ‘What do you think about this?’ I was totally expecting him to go, ‘There’s no damn way, you’ll be fine, screw all those guys talking and cutting those great promos.’

I have a meeting with him, and it’s like, ‘Boss, this is what I’m thinking.’ And I explained my reasoning for it, and it was like, ‘God damn that’s good, that’s great.’ I’m thinking it’s a rib, like here comes the punchline, he’s about to pull the rug right out from underneath me.”

The Undertaker also recently claimed that people accuse him of ruining their childhoods. Regardless, The Phenom will forever be regarded as one of the true GOATs of the world of professional wrestling and that’s never changing, especially thanks to the American Badass gimmick.

Do you believe The Undertaker’s pitch ultimately paid off? Why do you think Vince McMahon readily agreed to the idea? Let us know in the comments section below!