When former WWE star planned to murder Paul Heyman before killing himself
One of the most bizarre stories in WWE history came to light in 2019 during an episode of Tommy Dreamer's House of Hardcore podcast. The former WWE Superstar recalled how he once became so frustrated with Paul Heyman that he constructed a plan to kill his former ECW boss.
In 2001, Dreamer suffered from depression when ECW went out of business. The wrestling legend previously rejected a $750,000 offer from WCW after Heyman allegedly pleaded with him to stay loyal to ECW. At the time, he felt "scr*wed over" by Heyman, who joined WWE as a commentator once ECW ceased operations.
Dreamer was supposed to appear at WrestleMania 17, but plans changed at the last minute. Left angry and frustrated, the former ECW World Heavyweight Champion wanted to shoot Heyman on live television before killing himself:
"At WrestleMania, I was gonna hop the rail and I was gonna whack Paul E. [Heyman] in the back of the head right at the announce table, then I was gonna whack myself," Dreamer said. "The ultimate martyr, I was gonna hit my pose, crack, boom, pull the trigger. Because I was that insane, don't know if I would have went through with it, but that's what I was thinking about every day." (H/T Fightful)
This Day In Wrestling History
2001 – A week after Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler left the company, Paul Heyman shockingly made his debut as the new Monday Night Raw colour commentator. Heyman jumped ship from ECW, the company he ran that was heading for bankruptcy. https://t.co/xJNa3ZC8JA
In Dreamer's mind, fans would have viewed the moment as a storyline development before realizing the seriousness of the situation:
"I was like, 'I will go down in history.' Hit my pose. Pop, boom. First they'd think it as an angle until I shot him. I was so severely depressed and so mental with rage, I needed help."
Dreamer was initially due to make a cameo appearance in the TLC match between The Dudley Boyz, Edge & Christian, and The Hardy Boyz. However, the additional roles went to Lita, Rhyno, and Spike Dudley instead.
WWE's higher-ups also planned for Dreamer to participate in a Hardcore Championship angle, but that idea was also nixed.
Why Tommy Dreamer did not shoot Paul Heyman at WWE WrestleMania 17
Shortly before the event, Jim Ross left a message on Tommy Dreamer's phone. Ross, a talent relations executive at the time, reassured the former ECW star that WWE still wanted him despite the confusion surrounding his WrestleMania status.
Listen @BustedOpenRadio NOW
@davidlagreca1 & myself
Talking #WWERaw #WWEDraft
Everything pro wrestling https://t.co/JQXeHe287w
After hearing Ross' message, Dreamer changed his mindset and decided not to go through with his murder-suicide plan:
"I needed help. That help came from a phone call from Jim Ross. Randomly, I get a phone call from a number I didn't know. I didn't pick up, and I remember having these thoughts, and it was bad. I had a gun. Could you think about the horribleness that I would have done for my legacy? I would have ruined WrestleMania, which I love WrestleMania, for everybody. These thoughts were so crazed in my head. 'How dare that person, he scr*wed my parents over, I was scr*wed.'"
Three months after WrestleMania 17, Dreamer finally appeared in WWE on the July 9, 2001, episode of RAW. He became a member of the WCW/ECW Alliance faction as part of the Invasion angle.
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