20 WWE Wrestlers Who Hated Each Other In Real Life

The Montreal Screwjob is the single most infamous moment in wrestling history, and the most stunning example of an off-screen betrayal imaginable.

Bret Hart had won the WWE Championship at SummerSlam ‘97, and in the lead up to November’s Survivor Series event, he signed a contract to start working for WCW from December onwards. Vince McMahon was desperate to stop Hart from walking out of WWE with the belt, and set up a clash between him and Shawn Michaels to transfer the Championship over to The Heartbreak Kid on Bret’s way out.

The Hitman had other ideas, however. He and Michaels already had a long-standing off-screen rivalry, and with Survivor Series being held in his home country, Hart refused to lose. The three eventually came to an agreement that the match would end in a disqualification, and Bret would either lose or forfeit the belt a few days later.

That’s when McMahon turned the screw. The plan changed without Hart’s knowledge, and the match hit an abrupt end when referee Earl Hebner, on Vince’s orders, ended the match with Hart held in a Sharpshooter. Even though Hart had not given up or tapped out, Michaels was declared the winner, and Hart lost the belt.

Hart was furious. He marched back to the dressing rooms and demanded answers from Michaels and McMahon, who’d allegedly locked himself in his office. An altercation ensued, Hart dropped McMahon with a single punch, and that was that: Bret Hart was done with WWE.

The Hart/Michaels backstage rivalry started years earlier, and the duo famously got into a fistfight shortly after Michaels had publicly accused Hart of having an affair with Sunny, but it all came to a head in Montreal. The two appeared to bury the hatchet in 2011 upon Hart’s WWE return and look like they're on good terms today.

Either way, it’s unlikely that either man will ever forget the events that brought them to that point, and The Montreal Screwjob remains one of WWE’s darkest moments.