One of the most ambitious storylines in WWE in recent years was the Vince McMahon death storyline. Fans were shocked when they tuned in to Raw one day to see the WWE Chairman stepping into a limousine and exploding before their very eyes.
The ensuing power vacuum would have started off one of the greatest stories in wrestling history. Families would fight over who was next in line for the throne (including an appearance from Vince’s real-life brother), Vince’s son would be revealed and a year-long rivalry would culminate at WrestleMania 24.
It was set to be Vince’s magnum opus, a storyline like no other that other wrestling companies could only dream of showing on screen. Sadly, the whole thing fell apart due to the horrendous actions of just one man – Chris Benoit.
Vince McMahon Died In A Limousine Explosion On Raw
On the June 11th 2007 episode of Monday Night Raw, Vince McMahon died.
After his feud with Donald Trump and Bobby Lashley which saw him shave his head and win the ECW Championship, Vince McMahon was a mess. He was constantly paranoid, thinking people were watching him and out to get him.
Despite that, he held a “Vince McMahon Appreciation Night” on Raw on June 11th, celebrating everything great about the chairman. He seemed emotional all night, apparently aware of what was about to happen.
At the end of the show, a solemn McMahon walked through a crowd of Superstars (including a grinning Paul London) towards the back of the arena. He stopped, taking in one last look at the empire he created, before opening the door and stepping into the limousine.
As he slammed the door shut, the whole thing exploded in an almighty fireball as the show went off-air.
The fallout was chaos. Nobody knew if what they’d seen was real of fake. Donald Trump rang Vince McMahon to check if he was alive after hearing the news. Local hospitals were inundated with calls from fans who wanted to know if the former WWE Champion was alive.
Vince McMahon’s charred remains were never found, and he was assumed dead. A week later, a memorial show was presented, with wrestlers giving tributes to McMahon to the camera in the same way they did for Eddie Guerrero two years prior.
Rod McMahon Was Planned To Appear At Vince McMahon’s Funeral
After his fiery demise, Vince McMahon was set to have his funeral broadcast live on Monday Night Raw. The whole cast of WWE characters were meant to appear, including all the WWE Superstars, legends and his won family members.
Not only were Stephanie, Shane and Linda McMahon due to appear. Vince McMahon’s brother Rod McMahon was scheduled to speak at his brother’s funeral, marking his first-ever appearance in professional wrestling.
Despite the sad nature of the funeral, the plan was not for it to be a serious affair. Former WWE photographer John Giamundo explained how the funeral was supposed to be a joke at Vince McMahon’s expense, with comical elements like dropping the casket occurring throughout the show. It’s likely Rod McMahon would be saying some less-than-kind things about his brother, considering this fact.
“We’re in Corpus Christi and we’re being told that that show was Vince’s funeral. They were gonna do a memoriam and it was all just gonna be ‘haha’ at Vince’s expense. We were told what was gonna happen, they’re gonna drop the casket, and all this goofy, typical wrestling stuff.”
This episode of Raw, which was to entirely be a Vince McMahon memorial show, was to feature a number of different legends and Superstars appearing. Linda McMahon was to be arrested for the death of McMahon by a federal agent, making her the lead suspect in his murder. Considering his years of infidelity, it is not a bad shout that she could be the woman to pull the trigger.
WWE Hall of Famer “The Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase was also booked for the show. He was a long-time employee of Vince McMahon, but his character was meant to be a larger part of the show. We do not know exactly, but we can guess that he would have used his wealth to try and take over the company and fill the power vacuum left after McMahon’s death.
The Storyline Would Have Seen A Three-Way Power Struggle Between The McMahon’s
With Vince McMahon dead and Linda McMahon in custody, the Vince McMahon death storyline would have seen three McMahons (and one husband) vie for control over the WWE.
The first was Shane McMahon. As the eldest son and heir apparent to Vince’s throne, he would have been entitled to take over from his father. Shane previously showed great business acumen in the past and had the foresight to try and buy UFC years before it came to prominence and created the blueprint behind what would later become the highly successful NXT promotion.
The second was Stephanie McMahon and Triple H. Despite being the younger sibling, Stephanie was always the most ruthless of the two. She was the most like her father in business and had much more experience in WWE creative, even working as the general manager of Smackdown for some time. With former WWE Champion Triple as her husband, she was perfectly positioned to pick up where her father left off.
The third McMahon is one you didn’t even know was one. WWE Superstar Mr Kennedy, named after Vincent Kennedy McMahon, was going to turn out to be the long-lost illegitimate son of the WWE Chairman. The loudmouth from Wisconsin was going to try and usurp his half-siblings and become the dominant McMahon in the WWE with their father out of the picture.
It is said that Mr Kennedy, freshly revealed as the newest of the McMahon clan, would retain sole ownership of the company and begin his reign of terror of the promotion. The former Mr Money in the Bank would lord his power over his peers, using it to win matches and terrorise his enemies.
This would have led to Shane McMahon and Triple H being booked in more dangerous and violent matches, in an attempt to injure them and keep them away from his kingdom. He would have likely taken the WWE Championship from John Cena during this time, ending his nearly year-long reign in the process.
His reign would be fraught with cheating and using his powers to keep the belt on him at all costs. Wrestlers would have been fired on a whim for upsetting him or fed to monsters like Umaga or the Great Khali whenever he pleased.
The storyline would likely have lasted until WrestleMania 24. We speculate that a recently injured, fired or suspended Triple H would make his return at the Royal Rumble match, winning the whole thing to earn a shot at Mr Kennedy at WrestleMania. With the remaining McMahons by his side after their battles together, he would have enough support to take back the WWE Championship and control of the company.
Soon after, Mr McMahon would make his shocking return on Monday Night Raw. The reports of his death had been greatly exaggerated as it is revealed he faked his death entirely. Why? Likely to see how his children coped in his absence or to see how much the WWE Universe missed him during his spell away. Maybe he just needed a holiday, who knows?
That seems like the end of the story. It establishes McMahon as back in control, Triple H as the top babyface and saviour of the WWE and Mr Kennedy is now a top heel in the company. It also gives Stephanie and Shane more prominent roles in the company, with the only downside being Linda McMahon’s lengthy spell in jail due to murder.
It sounds like a brilliant storyline. Sadly, we never got to see what would have happened due to Chris Benoit.
The Chris Benoit Situation Meant The Vince McMahon Death Storyline Was Cancelled
Chris Benoit was found dead in his home on June 24th, 2007, along with his wife Nancy and son Daniel. The World Wrestling Entertainment dedicating the Monday Night Raw after his death to his memory, declaring it the “Chris Benoit Tribute show“.
The show opened with Vince McMahon alone in the ring. It was two weeks after his supposed demise and a huge shock to many. He announced that Mr McMahon’s death was only part of a storyline which had now been cancelled, with the show instead paying tribute to Chris Benoit.
It featured some of Benoit’s best matches as well as talking heads from the wrestlers talking about their friendships with Chris Benoit. It was a sombre affair and a great tribute show, although one that would never see the light of day again.
That is because soon after (some day during the actual show) the truth behind Chris Benoit’s death became clear. The former World Heavyweight Champion killed his wife and son before hanging himself in his gym. It was a ghastly revision of the events and one that shocked the wrestling world to its very core.
While it helped alter the WWE’s drug and concussion policies, Chris Benoit also stopped the Vince McMahon funeral angle and consequential push of Mr Kennedy. They found it too distasteful after his crimes and wanted something happier for the fans going forward.
If not for Chris Benoit, we would have seen Vince McMahon’s funeral, Mr Kennedy as a WWE Champion and WrestleMania main eventer and even an appearance from Rod McMahon.
