The McMahons are the first family of pro wrestling. Vince McMahon become the most powerful man in the wrestling industry after growing WWE into a household name. Wrestling evolved from a local show into a juggernaut thanks mostly to his vision but with that success came great ego. McMahon made himself a very prominent on-air figure in the late 90s and was the top heel in the company. Feuds with Steve Austin, Mick Foley and a few others turned the owner of the company into the most hated figure in the business. It is easy to hate a rich, powerful corporate businessman but McMahon made it even easier.
With the introduction of Vince to television, his family would become on-air characters as well. Wife Linda McMahon along with children Shane McMahon and Stephanie McMahon played various roles through the years but it would mostly consist of feuds against each other in some form. For a good few years, WWE turned into the McMahon Family Feud show and they were all featured on a consistent basis. This set a controversial precedent as all four McMahons were not active wrestlers but Vince, Stephanie and Shane tried their hand at the in-ring work. Vince loved putting it out there and creating over the top stories with his loved ones.
Shane was known for being a daredevil that wasn’t afraid to put his body on the line despite his high standing but he eventually decided to leave the company. Stephanie still holds the second in command position with husband Triple H (who is not included as a McMahon on this list) to her father today and plays the arrogant heel role to perfection. Linda didn’t have much in terms of acting chops, but she did serve as a necessary impartial presence during most of her appearances. Vince has played just about every role and has recently returned to the current television product to feud with Roman Reigns. The McMahon family has been a big part of the on-air product and they’ve had their fair share of terrible segments, promos and matches. We’re going to look at the fifteen worst McMahon family moments of all time.
15 15. Vince McMahon vs. God
The ego of Vince McMahon has led to various storylines, segments and overall moments that would cause fans to shake their head at the television screen. McMahon was involved in a feud with Shawn Michaels that led to a Michaels win at WrestleMania 22. Vince declared Michaels winning was “an act of God” and a match would be booked on the following Backlash 2006 PPV featuring Vince and Shane McMahon facing Michaels and “God.” The match played out that the McMahons would double team Michaels and get the victory because “God” didn’t show up. McMahon formed his own religion called “McMahon-ism” and compared himself to a god in the build-up to the match.
14 14. Stephanie McMahon Takes Credit for Divas Revolution
NXT launched the excitement involved in women’s wrestling by WWE fans. Sasha Banks, Bayley, Becky Lynch and Charlotte delivered tremendous matches in NXT and it led to the fan base not only accepting female wrestling but demanding it. The main roster still featured incredibly short and lackluster matches but WWE decided to change the approach. Stephanie McMahon announced she called up Charlotte, Banks and Lynch to start the “Divas Revolution.” This set the movement back before it even started. The magic of the momentum was the organic excitement from fans but it was sacrificed for Stephanie receiving credit for it. Most of the promo videos and segments about the new women featured references to Stephanie in a very self-indulgent way.
13 13. Shane McMahon Getting Electrocuted by Kane
Kane got unmasked in 2003 and was pushed as one of the biggest heels in the company. One of the ways to make him relevant was putting him in a feud with half of the McMahon family. After Kane hit Linda McMahon with the Tombstone Piledriver, Shane McMahon returned to avenge his injured mother. The two would have a couple of PPV matches but the most memorable incident occurred on an episode of Raw to set up a match. Kane tried to electrocute Shane’s testicles. That’s not a euphemism or slang term for a wrestling move. Kane literally attached jumper cables to Shane-O-Mac’s lower region and hoped to electrocute any future McMahon grandchildren.
12 12. WrestleMania 2000
The most ego-driven moment from the McMahon family came during the WrestleMania main event in 2000. Instead of building a story around two of the more popular wrestlers, like a traditional WrestleMania main event, the big match was centered around McMahon family drama. Stephanie sided with husband Triple H, Shane paired with Big Show, Linda McMahon brought back Mick Foley and Vince McMahon supported The Rock heading into the show. The event was billed as a “McMahon in every corner” and ended with Vince turning on The Rock to join his kids. This was one of the most disappointing Wrestlemania endings in history and put the McMahon family above the wrestlers.
11 11. Vince McMahon Says the N-word
Vince McMahon is known to push the buttons as far as he can take them but there have been many instances where crossed the line. This was spotlighted at Survivor Series 2005 when McMahon uttered the n-word on live PPV. John Cena was still doing his hip hop gimmick and McMahon tried talking in urban slang to him. This was tacky but harmless enough until the chairman of the board dropped the racial slur with the intention of parodying hip hop lyrics. Booker T and Sharmell were caught reacting with offense to add to the moment. Whatever Vince was going for failed and it made everyone involved look worse.
10 10. Eric Bischoff Sexually Assaults Linda McMahon
Linda McMahon was less of an on-air character than her husband or children but she's still found herself in a few embarrassing segments. One of these took place during her son Shane’s feud with Eric Bischoff. Before Shane faced Bischoff at SummerSlam 2003, Bischoff broke into Linda’s home and forcefully made out with her on national television. This was as terrible and uncomfortable to watch as it sounds and it added very little to the match or feud. Vince had the tendency to put his family in awkward moments on television because he felt fans cared more about them than most of the talent and this was one of the cases where it backfired.
9 9. Stephanie McMahon Compared 9/11 to Sterioid Trial
Following the tragedy of terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on 9/11/2001, WWE aired an episode of SmackDown days later with wrestlers giving their condolences to victims and sharing messages of unity. Stephanie McMahon made one of the most ignorant comments in the history of the industry when she compared the attacks to her father being put on trial for the WWE’s role in steroid use and distribution in the early 90s. Stephanie said her family united together against the government during the trials and America should do the same against terrorism. Really?
8 8. Linda McMahon in Comatose State
The McMahon feud reached a high point in 2001 just one year after they occupied the main event at WrestleMania 2000. Vince McMahon and Shane McMahon had one of the bigger matches on WrestleMania X-Seven due to Vince mistreating Linda McMahon. Vince had Linda drugged into a comatose state so he could flaunt an affair with Trish Stratus in front of her. The segments were horribly embarrassing and are almost impossible to watch back without feeling hesitant about being a proud wrestling fan. This storyline hurt the political campaign of Linda McMahon years later and hurt the entertainment value of the wrestling fan.
7 7. Vince McMahon Makes Trish Stratus Bark Like a Dog
Vince McMahon's feud against Shane McMahon and Linda McMahon reached a low point when Vince decided to humiliate his lover Trish Stratus on Raw. McMahon demanded Stratus show her love of him by stripping to her bra and panties, before he asked her to get on her knees and bark like a dog in the middle of the ring. The intent of the humiliation was to get more heat on Vince and set up a future Trish face turn, but it was extremely low class television. WWE tries to hide footage of this today because it still hurts their reputation as they’ve made strides to change the content they put out.
6 6. Jim Ross vs. The McMahons
Jim Ross has been a target of McMahon family abuse quite a few times, but the worst of it came when he was fired by Linda McMahon. Steve Austin stunned each member of the McMahon family and Ross was going to get fired because of it. Linda arrived in a moment that fans expected would save Ross from Vince and Stephanie, who were usually the heels. Instead, she joined her family and played a villainous role for the first time by firing Ross and kicking him in the testicles. Ross was leaving to have colon surgery in real life due to health issues and Vince mocked him by airing a parody video of him performing the surgery. Both moments were terrible and made the entire company look like buffoons.
5 5. Vince McMahon’s “Death”
The infamous limo explosion was one of the most bizarre storylines in WWE history. The company was in a weird stage after The Attitude Era, just before they moved into the PG-era. This storyline featured Vince McMahon slowly walking to the parking lot into his limo and the limo exploding. Fans were supposed to believe McMahon died in the limo and that would start a long storyline about the aftermath and how it would effect on the WWE. The storyline was rumored to lead to a Mr. Kennedy push with Vince coming back from the dead to support him as his illegitimate son. This was cancelled shortly after due to the Benoit family tragedy.
4 4. Stephanie McMahon “Marries” Triple H
This is the television marriage of Stephanie McMahon and Triple H rather than the real life marriage between the two, though many would argue the latter deserves to make the list as well. Stephanie was engaged to Test on television but after being drugged during her bachelorette party, Triple H kidnapped her and staged a marriage at a cheap chapel. That’s right. WWE aired a woman being drugged, kidnapped, and married, while there was implied sexual assaulted... and it was the daughter of the owner of the company. The aftermath was entertaining with both becoming more well-rounded characters together but this was just one of those moments where you feel ashamed to watch WWE.
3 3. Vince McMahon is the Higher Power
The first stage of the never-ending storylines between the McMahon family featured The Undertaker trying to marry Stephanie McMahon. ‘Taker was playing his Ministry character of a satanic figure and tried to kidnap Stephanie. This led him into a feud against the McMahons until he admitted he was doing all of these acts under the guidance of a “higher power.” The higher power was revealed to be Vince McMahon. As a way to get back at Steve Austin, McMahon used his daughter as bait for an elaborate plan to make Undertaker a powerful heel that forced Austin to trust Vince. The reveal was supposed to be met with shock and awe, but instead it was yet another McMahon swerve that made absolutely no sense.
2 2. The McMahon Kids Own WCW/ECW
The late 90s were a special time in wrestling due to WWE, WCW and ECW all putting out a popular product. Fans would dream for years about a WWE vs. WCW or WWE vs. ECW storyline. With business running dry and poor management, WCW and ECW both went out of business in early 2001 and Vince McMahon pounced to purchase the rights of both companies. Instead of the popular acts in the actual companies leading the way, Shane McMahon was revealed as the new WCW owner and Stephanie McMahon was the new ECW owner. We all wanted the most exciting storyline of all time, but we got yet another pointless McMahon family feud.
1 1. Vince McMahon’s Kiss My Ass Club
This list has featured an assortment of ridiculous and idiotic moments. What could possibly top the list? An old man stripping down and having others kiss his ass, of course. Vince McMahon’s ego reached a high point in 2001 and he coincidentally started the “Vince McMahon Kiss My Ass Club” that would see wrestlers forced to drop down to their knees and kiss the owner’s backside. William Regal, Jim Ross, Shawn Michaels and Mick Foley would become members of the “club” by having to literally kiss McMahon’s ass. Of all his ridiculous and embarrassing moments, McMahon forcing others to peck his rear end was unparalleled. The Kiss My Ass Club was the worst McMahon moment and one of the most embarrassing concepts in WWE history.