The Hardy Boyz have revealed that Vince McMahon rejected a creative pitch during their 2017 WWE run. The storyline would have featured an injured Jeff Hardy appearing as a mental projection to Matt Hardy’s “Woken” persona, but McMahon ultimately dismissed the concept.
The idea came while Jeff was sidelined with a shoulder injury soon after the team’s return to WWE. In an interview with Rewind Recap Relive, Matt Hardy detailed the inspiration and McMahon’s reaction.
“One thing that I pitched one time, when I was doing Woken Matt – Broken Matt – Woken Matt in WWE was, Jeff was out hurt with the shoulder surgery and I said, ‘What if we kinda use Jeff, we kinda keep him on TV, but he’s still there, his shoulder’s hurt and whatever else, you see Broken Matt talking to him, and he’s like my North Star, he’s like my guiding light.’ It was from Dexter because Dexter’s dad is kinda like his conscience in many ways, and I was saying like that. I pitched it to Vince, and he said, ‘So wait, is Jeff not really there?’, I said, ‘No he’s in my mind, like mentally, and I’m talking to him and he’s giving me advice, whatever else, somebody walks in and they look to where I’m talking to and nobody’s there.’ He’s like, ‘I don’t know, that’s a little much. D–mit Matt.’” (h/t Wrestletalk)
Jeff Hardy backed the idea and said he believed it would have worked. “It would have been great, even if I was in my brace from my surgery and I was sitting there talking to Matt, and naturally only Matt is seeing me because it’s not real. I thought that would have been great,” Jeff said.
Currently, The Hardy Boyz hold the TNA World Tag Team Championship. Their next defense is set to be billed as a final showdown with the Dudley Boyz, known in TNA as Team 3D. The match is scheduled for the Bound For Glory pay-per-view on October 12 in Lowell, Massachusetts.
On the September 25 edition of iMPACT!, the contest was made a Tables Match after Bully Ray challenged them, citing revenge for losing a similar bout to The Hardys at the 2000 Royal Rumble. An added stipulation requires Team 3D to publicly recognize The Hardy Boyz as the greatest tag team of their generation if they lose.