Bret Hart Feared Owen Was Murdered By WWE

Bret Hart has revealed his concern that his brother Owen had been murdered when he fell to his death in a WWE ring back in 1999.

The Over The Edge pay-per-view on May 23rd 1999 will long live in infamy as the show that Owen Hart died in the ring on. Hart was being lowered from the ceiling of the Kemper Arena in Kansas City when a tragic fault led to the star falling to his death in the ring.

This came 18 months after Bret Hart had been screwed over by Vince McMahon on his way to WCW and it seems that fallout had caused some real worry on behalf of The Hitman.

Speaking on the Mr McMahon Netflix documentary, Bret Hart revealed he was concerned something sinister had happened to his brother because of his own bad blood with the company at the time:

It really was very hard for me to take at that time because I kept thinking that maybe it was – maybe they murdered him to get back at me.

Vince McMahon then notes in the documentary that while the company settled a wrongful death lawsuit with Owen’s widow Martha Hart, the company then sued the manufacturer of the equipment used in the stunt as it was known to be defective.

Bret Hart Found Peace After Police Phone Call

It was hearing from a Kansas City police officer that finally allowed Bret Hart to believe that his brother’s death had been solely a tragic accident:

They investigated Vince and WWE for a long time. A policeman from Kansas City’s police department called me and he goes “I promised I’d call you and I’m calling to tell you that there’s nothing criminal here, this was just a horrible accident. And for me when I heard that, it was like “Okay, it’s an accident.”

Basically, I think in my heart of hearts, I forgave Vince. I had plenty of reasons to have issues with Vince but they were on a professional level and not a personal level.

Vince McMahon has confirmed the reason he decided to continue the show following Hart’s death – a move that has long been criticised by many over the years since it happened.

If you use any quotes from this article please credit original source and then h/t with a link back to TJR Wrestling for the transcription.