Martha Hart speaks out against Netflix 'McMahon' docuseries, blames WWE for Calgary wrestler Owen Hart's death
Martha Hart, the widow of Calgary wrestler Owen Hart, is speaking out after the release of Netflix's Mr. McMahon documentary series, which she says inaccurately portrays her husband's death as an accident.
Hart fell eight storeys to his death in 1999 while being lowered from the roof during an Over the Edge pay-per-view wrestling event in Kansas City, Mo.
He was 34 at the time.
Owen's death is discussed in the fourth episode of the docuseries.
In a statement issued Friday, Martha voices frustration over former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) owner and CEO Vince McMahon saying in the documentary that Owen's death wasn't the organization's fault.
"Nothing could be further from the truth," Martha states.
"The real truth is that on May 23, 1999, out of a desire to cut costs and achieve a 'quick release' effect that a rigging expert specifically warned against, WWE hired unqualified riggers to arrange a stunt in which Owen was to rappel from the rafters.
"As a result, the riggers used incorrect equipment that caused Owen to fall to his death. It was pure negligence that killed my husband."
Martha states the Netflix series "allows" Vince McMahon to claim that "the apparatus they were using was defective" and notes that WWE settled its lawsuit against the manufacturer of the harness used in the stunt.
"What the documentary fails to mention is that the equipment used was never meant for a rappelling stunt," Martha says in her statement.
"Instead, a harness meant for dragging stunt people behind cars on movie shoots was used with a sailboat clip meant to release on load with only six pounds of pressure. Had the WWE hired qualified riggers who followed proper protocol that included redundancy, as is typical practice, and used the correct equipment, Owen would not have died that night."
Martha says she still holds the WWE and its then-management responsible for Owen’s death.
"I refuse to let Vince McMahon or anyone else rewrite that history."
Martha filed a wrongful death lawsuit, and was, in turn sued by WWE for breach of contract.
She says no one involved in the making of this documentary attempted to contact her for comment, or to "obtain an accurate perspective" on her husband's death.
CTV News has reached out to Netflix for the company's response to the accusations. This article will be updated if/when we hear back.
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