How WCW Blew Bret Hart’s Comeback and Why It Still Hurts
How wrestling’s sharpest storyteller got lost in WCW’s creative black hole.
In the winter of 1997, Bret “The Hitman” Hart should have been riding high. Fresh off a legendary WWE run and arguably the most infamous moment in wrestling history the Montreal Screwjob Bret arrived in WCW with all the momentum in the world. Fans were rabid to see how the best technical wrestler alive would make his mark in the company that had just stolen wrestling’s crown jewel. And then… nothing.
Not nothing in the literal sense. Bret had matches, cut promos, and collected a paycheck. But the electricity, the urgency, the revenge arc it all vanished in a fog of half-baked storylines and bizarre creative choices. WCW didn’t just fail to capitalize on Bret Hart. They completely misused him. And decades later, it still stings.
Bret Hart’s WWE exit should’ve been rocket fuel. He was the most sympathetic figure in wrestling, wronged by Vince McMahon in front of the entire world. Fans were frothing at the mouth for him to kick down the doors in WCW and go scorched-earth on the company that betrayed him. Instead, WCW introduced him as a guest referee in a match between Eric Bischoff and Larry Zbyszko.
Let that sink in. Bret Hart. The guy who had just been screwed out of the WWE Championship in the most controversial finish in wrestling history… was introduced as a special referee in a midcard match that had nothing to do with him.
From there, it only got worse. Bret was never really aligned with anyone. He wasn’t fully with WCW, wasn’t clearly against the nWo, and never had a proper feud with Hogan, despite years of built-in animosity and the fact they were now under the same roof. It was as if WCW had no clue what they had in Bret Hart. Or worse, maybe they did and just didn’t care.
It wasn’t just the booking that was bad it was the absence of any meaningful direction. Bret would randomly show up, interfere in matches, flip from heel to babyface without explanation, and get wedged into storylines that never suited his strengths. WCW didn’t let Bret be Bret. They just slotted him into the machine, assuming his star power would carry the rest.
Compare that to how WWE treated stars they brought in. Think about how they debuted Chris Jericho in 1999. Or how they framed the return of The Rock in 2011. Those moments felt seismic. With Bret, WCW took the hottest free agent in wrestling and buried him in white noise.
It’s even more painful considering what could’ve been. A blood feud with Hogan over who was truly the better champion. A dream match with Sting. An angle where Bret aligns with the WCW locker room to fight the nWo from within. A slow-burn story that finally leads to Bret becoming the company’s moral center after the chaos of 1996–1997.
Instead, Bret was adrift. He won a few titles, sure. But who remembers them? His U.S. Title reigns were forgettable. His World Title runs were short-lived and unceremonious. Even his matches, usually crisp and compelling, felt flat in the WCW ring. It wasn’t his talent that diminished it was the environment.
Bret’s eventual injury in 1999, after a reckless kick from Goldberg, ended his career far too early. But the truth is, WCW had already wasted his prime years. The injury was the final blow, but the damage was done long before.
Why does it still hurt? Because Bret Hart wasn’t just a great wrestler he was our wrestler. He was the technician, the storyteller, the guy who could make a match feel like a battle of wills. Watching him flounder in WCW felt like watching your favorite band play a set where the sound system keeps cutting out.
And in a way, Bret’s WCW run is a metaphor for the company itself. All the talent in the world. All the potential. All the opportunity. And absolutely no clue what to do with any of it.
So yeah, it still stings. Because WCW didn’t just waste a wrestler they wasted the wrestler. And in doing so, they robbed us of years of dream matches, unforgettable moments, and the proper sendoff Bret Hart deserved.
That’s why it hurts. Because Bret deserved better. And WCW had every chance to give it to him.