Mr. McMahon Docuseries Producers Share Bizarre Filming Experience with Vince McMahon

Producers of the upcoming "Mr. McMahon" docuseries have shared that their experience working with Vince McMahon was unlike anything they had ever encountered. Executive producer Bill Simmons discussed the project during an interview with The Ringer's David Shoemaker on The Bill Simmons Podcast.

“It was certainly the strangest documentary process I’ve ever been involved with,” Simmons admitted.

Shoemaker added that Vince McMahon's commitment to the production was inconsistent. “I don’t think Vince – it sounds so weird to say – I’m not sure Vince knew what it meant to do the documentary and I’m not sure that he knew what story he wanted to tell,” Shoemaker revealed. “I don’t even know if he knows who he is enough to tell that story.”

He further described McMahon's frequent absences. “Even when he was eager, he wasn’t there on time or on the days that he was supposed to be there,” said Shoemaker.

Simmons also commented on the atmosphere McMahon created during filming: “He always had people with him. There was always people, kind of, lingering in the background making sure nothing weird happened.”

Shoemaker elaborated, “Yeah, and reminding him of things in his past. There was always a team.”

The docuseries, directed by Chris Smith (known for his work on Tiger King), proved to be a unique challenge for the production team. Despite their extensive experience, both Simmons and Shoemaker remarked on how the process was unlike any other.

“Chris Smith, the entire production team have done so many documentaries of this sort, and of all sorts. They’ve been working in this world forever,” Shoemaker explained. “This is the guy that did The Tiger King, and none of them had ever experienced a working situation like we encountered in Stanford, Connecticut.”

Shoemaker went on to describe days filled with delays, stating, “We would show up to shoot and then just all day long be getting updates from Vince’s secretary about his ETA. Six hours, eight hours before the shoot, pushing it back an hour, pushing it back another hour.”

“And then he would roll in at 11 p.m., pitch black, with his little crew around him and shake everybody’s hand,” Shoemaker continued. “It was just such a bizarre situation.”

Despite the difficulties, the team gathered a wealth of footage, including four hours of Vince McMahon interviews that didn't make the final cut. Shoemaker recalled, “We had four hours of Vince’s interview on the cutting room floor because he sounded like a frog one day. He didn’t have a voice. There was so much good material but I think the story that Chris and his team were able to tell was pretty amazing.”

Simmons also mentioned an intriguing story involving Vince McMahon and Evel Knievel that was left out of the final product.

The final half-hour of today’s Bill Simmons Podcast delves into the making of the Mr. McMahon docuseries.