Bret Hart Originally Had Drastically Different Role on ”The Simpsons”

WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart has accomplished a lot during his time in the world of professional wrestling, despite being a controversial figure in the business as well. It led to him eventually making an appearance on ”The Simpsons” but it appears he almost voiced a different character on the show.

Bret Hart was a major wrestling star in 1997 when he was invited to appear on The Simpsons. During this time, the show was incredibly popular, especially in its eighth season. The episode titled “The Old Man and the Lisa” centered around Mr. Burns, Homer’s wealthy boss, experiencing tough times.

Although the show only gave Bret a few lines, his cameo was considered one of the better celebrity appearances in the series. Hart showed little respect for Mr. Burns, calling him “pitiful” and using other insults. His appearance was ultimately well-received by fans.

While speaking on the Wrestling Classic podcast, Bret Hart talked about his original plans for his appearance on ”The Simpsons.” Initially, he was told he couldn’t play himself. Instead, the role was for a character called the Mad Viking. Hart accepted this and did the voiceover for the Mad Viking, which is why the voice didn’t sound like him; he was trying to sound different.

After he finished, the producer came up to him while he was signing autographs in the parking lot at Fox Studios, where around 300 fans were waiting in line. The producer was surprised by how popular Hart was and said he didn’t know Hart was so famous. Then, he decided to change the character to make it Hart himself. Hart felt this showed that being nice and signing autographs can really pay off.

”Originally, I remember they wanted me to be Bret Hart on the show, but they said no; it was just a part for a wrestler. I think my character was called the Mad Viking or something like that. I thought, “Okay.” So when I did the voiceover, I was the voice for the Mad Viking; I wasn’t Bret Hart. It was a little different, which is why when you hear the voiceover, it doesn’t sound like me. I was trying to sound like somebody else.

After everything was done, the producer came up to me while I was signing autographs in the parking lot at Fox Studios. There were probably about 300 people in line waiting for autographs. He came up and said, “I had no idea you were that famous.” Then he said, “We’re going to draw you in as you.” So they changed it and drew me in as myself. I thought that’s where it pays off to be a nice guy and sign some autographs.”

Bret Hart isn’t the only pro wrestler to appear on ”The Simpsons” as John Cena recently made his appearance on the show as well, where he helped deliver Comic Book Guy’s baby. Nonetheless, fans will always view Bret Hart’s appearance on the show as a big deal and it’s not hard to see why.

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