"Too controversial for WWE" - Former star recalls getting fired after Vince McMahon booking brought real-life problems
A former WWE Superstar recalled getting fired amid controversy surrounding his on-screen character, which was booked by Vince McMahon. The character was apparently causing real-life problems since the situation was too fresh for the audience and some couldn't separate on-screen storyline from reality.
Muhammad Hassan is quite possibly one of the most controversial superstars created in WWE history. Hassan was introduced as a stereotypical Arab-American just a few years following the 9/11 attacks.
Due to the incredible heat the character generated, Hassan was eventually fired after a controversial segment that landed WWE in hot water. He opened up about his firing in a recent interview on Insight with Chris Van Vliet.
"Someone had said, too controversial for WWE, which I kind of liked because that is a distinguishment right there. Yeah, it was definitely a controversial character and I feel like I played it pretty well. I was talking about this last night, it was very hard to get into character with Shawn (Daivari) because everywhere we went, we kind of faced that. I mean, it was still pretty fresh after 9/11. We went to the airport and Shawn would always be randomly checked at every single airport," Hassan said.
The former WWE Superstar added:
"It'd be very annoying because then we'd have to run to our flight. So, I kind of use that as my anger, obviously, more things than that. But it was very easy to fall into that character and be able to speak the truth about what I saw, because that was what was happening back then. And again, that character would never fly today. You know, it kind of had to stay in its time and I think it's kind of cool for me doing something completely different that that character still stays as controversial." [H/T- chrisvanvliet.com]
Muhammad Hassan was Arab-American on WWE TV but Italian in real life
In the same interview with Chris Van Vliet, Muhammad Hassan, real name Mark Copani, revealed that he's not really Arab-American. He's Italian American and his family originated from Sicily. He even pointed out that his manager Shawn Daivari was Persian and not Arab.
"I am 100% Sicilian. And Shawn is not Arab, either. He's Iranian. He's Persian. So again, you know, like, I still hear about that like that. I played an Arab character. It's like, it's all phony, man. It's this character on TV. It's the same thing. But, with Shawn speaking Farsi, it really tied the whole thing together and that's what really started generating a lot of heat," Hassan said. [H/T- chrisvanvliet.com]
Muhammad Hassan made his WWE main roster debut in late 2004 and immediately became one of the top heels in the company. He went up against the likes of John Cena, Big Show, Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker before his unfortunate release in September 2005.