Netflix‘s damning new documentary series Mr. McMahon chronicles the complicated legacy of WWE under Vince McMahon‘s leadership, from the victories inside of the ring to the shocking crimes allegedly committed behind the scenes.
Episode 2 of the series, titled “Heat,” dives into the alleged abuse that women and teenage boys employed in the organization were subjected to. At one point during the documentary, wrestler Tony Atlas — whose real name is Anthony White — makes a rather shocking confession when reflecting on the “depravity” that went on behind the scenes.
“We would have been looked upon in today’s society as some of the worst human beings walking the face of the Earth,” Atlas said in the doc. “I mean, we abused the hell out of women. All of us did. You know, they were like a toy for us.”
He added, “I hear some horrible stuff about women in wrestling. Horrible.”
After briefly pointing to the mysterious death of wrestler Jimmy Snuka’s girlfriend in 1983, the episode also goes on to detail one particular scandal in 1992 that allegedly included ring boss Mel Phillips and WWE executives Terry Garvin and Pat Patterson.
According to New York Post reporter Phil Mushnick, Phillips would hire teenage boys to put up and take down the ringed fences during matches. “In too many cases, these ring boys were underaged and they were being sexually abused,” he said.
Wrestler Bret Hart later called Phillips “a total pedophile that preyed on young boys” and claimed, “If these young boys weren’t complying with their requests for sexual favors, they weren’t hired.”
But McMahon described the allegations differently during his interview in the documentary series. “There was so much going on at the time and one accusation is that someone from our organization was coming onto someone from our ring crew,” he said.
The show also details the sexual assault allegations Rita Chatterton, also known as Rita Marie, launched against McMahon in the ’90s. Marie was the first female referee in WWF who was later inducted into the Women’s Wrestling Hall of Fame.
She accused him of forcing her to perform sexual acts on him in 1986. But the allegations came well after the state of limitations expired, so McMahon never faced any charges.
McMahon dismissed the allegations in the Netflix documentary series.
“When you’re accused of this and accused of that, and there’s this deluge of things, ‘You’re this, you’re that.’ One of the things was an alleged rape, that never happened. Once you’re accused of rape, you’re a rapist,” he said. “It was consensual, and actually, had it been a rape, the statute of limitations had run out. It’s all kind of crap like that, that people are digging up and trying to find something on you.”
All six episodes of Mr. McMahon are streaming now on Netflix.
If you or someone you know needs to reach out about sexual abuse or assault, RAINN is available 24/7 at 800-656-HOPE (4673), or online at RAINN.org.