Maria Kanellis Calls For Change In WWE, Says “We Were All Afraid In WWE”
Maria Kanellis-Bennett is known for speaking her mind and recently on social media, she has called out WWE to change things.
The comments from Maria followed the recent Dark Side of the Ring episode about WWE’s “Plane Ride From Hell.”
Stories of the “Plane Ride of Hell” have existed for nearly 20 years since the May 2002 trip that saw WWE charter a plane to fly them from the UK to the US. There were several awful incidents that took place that resulted in fines, lawsuits, and even saw Hall of Fame talent like Scott Hall and Curt Hennig (Mr. Perfect) get released by WWE because of their actions.
In response to the Dark Side of the Ring documentary, Maria sent out the following tweets that were critical of WWE.
It was always, “don’t sell it, don’t let them see you cry, you are lucky to be here, boys being boys, it’s funny, etc etc…” all lies to hide the grossness of it all. It was a culture that some people still try and uphold today. “Back in my day…” is part of that lie. https://t.co/jRWx2GUm9z
— MariaKanellisBennett (@MariaLKanellis) September 17, 2021
It was all for power and for us to be submissive. Playing dumb kept me safe back then but now I fight against all that nonsense. We were all afraid in WWE. I refuse to be afraid anymore. https://t.co/9kqBSXgpHr
— MariaKanellisBennett (@MariaLKanellis) September 17, 2021
Maria had a lot of praise for the talent in WWE while noting that was her favorite part of the company, but added that other aspects of WWE need to change.
The talent changed. The talent was my favorite part of my last run. I received nothing but respect from my contemporaries. The office needs to change. The focus needs to be on the physical and mental health of their talent. They need an HR department that is not WWE run. https://t.co/8iHdrqD4hR
— MariaKanellisBennett (@MariaLKanellis) September 17, 2021
There has been plenty of fallout so far from the Dark Side of the Ring with Impact Wrestling suspending Tommy Dreamer indefinitely due to some insensitive remarks that he made on the show. Meanwhile, CarShiled has decided to “pause” airing their commercial featuring Ric Flair due to Flair’s inappropriate behaviour on the Plane Ride From Hell.
Maria Kanellis was hired as a full-time performer by WWE after competing in the 2004 Diva Search. Her tenure in WWE saw her work as a backstage interviewer, manager, wrestler and she also posed for Playboy as well. She was released by WWE in 2010. Following her WWE run, she worked for Ring of Honor, Impact Wrestling she appeared in New Japan Wrestling as well and married wrestler Mike Bennett.
Mike and Maria appeared in WWE together in 2017 and were released in April 2020. Mike used Maria’s maiden name in his WWE career where he competed as Mike Kanellis. The couple has a daughter and son together. During her run in Impact Wrestling, Maria was a one-time Knockouts Champion and she even won the WWE 24/7 Title as well…while pregnant! It was an impressive feat. Maria works for Ring of Honor as one of the main people behind the ROH women’s division.