There are few pro wrestlers more beloved worldwide these days than Matt Hardy. Everyone is excited that he’s reached an agreement with Impact Wrestling to use his “Broken Universe” characters, and is now available as part of a brand-new WWE 2K18 DLC pack of playable Legends.
We were lucky enough to get a chance to talk to Hardy on this week’s McMahonsplaining podcast, which you can listen to right here. This is just an excerpt of our conversation, but it still has plenty of DELIGHTFUL tidbits about Matt Hardy’s WOKEN journey.
WITH SPANDEX: Now, the first question I have for you is that it looks like you have reached an agreement with Anthem and The Owl. Is there anything you can tell us about that?
Matt Hardy: Really the only detail I can go into there is that, you know, we’re, you know, starting with the Woken universe in the WWE, and recently you’ve only seen a sliver of [it]. And you, obviously, being in the know, you know a lot of the backstory about the Woken universe when it was known as the Broken universe, before my CONDEESHUN became subdued at WrestleMania 33, and now it is going through an awakening, and I am Woken.
But this is what I can say: now that everything has been settled and everything has been put behind us, anything is possible in the WWE. And I’m sure you will see most things that you will come to expect in the WWE, and I think you will see even new characters and personas that you haven’t even met or interacted with yet. So, I think it’s a very, very exciting time moving forward.
That’s awesome, because that was my next question for you. So much about the Broken universe that everyone loved was all these characters and things that we’ve never seen anywhere else on pro wrestling or on television, but so far with Woken Matt, all we’ve really seen is laughing. Are we going to see some compound footage, or anything else that’s outside of the WWE Universe?
I certainly believe you will, and the reason I say … I’m happy it started like it has … And you’re obviously a very intelligent man. You’re a man that has a mind of intelligence. I was just going to say, you know, there are so many people that are contained within the WWE universe, which are children and younger fans, and there are so many casual fans that just watch WWE that have no idea about the amazing, intoxicating escalades of the Broken universe. You know, so it’s hard to throw that on and allow these new fans that have never seen any of this digest that all at once.
But if they start with the character of Woken Matt and they understand that, you know, this CONDEESHUN inside of me has woken up, where I try and help and aid spot monkeys with their terrible ADEECKTIONS, and all of these things, and whatnot. And also have to delete characters of the darkness, like the nefarious, putrid Sister Abigail that is housed within Bray Wyatt. If they can understand my Woken Wisdom and Woken Matt Hardy, then we will be able to continually introduce characters, whether they be a Queen Rebecca, or King Maxel, or Lord Wolfgang, or Señor Benjamin, or Vanguard-1. They have many, many characters that are going to be involved in the Woken universe when it’s all said and done.
Matt, what do you think would happen if you were to throw Bray Wyatt into the Lake of Reincarnation?
That’s a very interesting question. I would first be concerned he’s gonna come back as a disgusting “Husky Harris.” That would be my first concern. The second concern, which isn’t as much a concern but would be my hope, is that between myself and the Seven Deities, if we could delete this demon that lives within him, this Sister Abigail, we could dump him in and he could return to the force that he used to be.
Because many, many years ago, Bray Wyatt — the soul that is within him, that is suppressed — was once … was not a bad guy. But this Sister Abigail is the one that has really taken over his vessel and made him into something evil. So, I’m hoping we can get Bray Wyatt to where he needs to be, because he actually could, in the future, potentially be a wonderful soldier of the light. We just have to get rid of this notorious, nefarious Sister Abigail.
Do you have any thoughts about the Compound Confrontation between the Wyatt Family and The New Day?
I did get to witness some of that, yes. Very, very interesting. I understood that they — The Day of New traveled to the Wyatt compound, and while they were there they had a little bit of a fight … a little bit of a battle. And I saw it, and I think there were some things about it that were very interesting.
The things that I would probably be critical of is that it was a little short, and I don’t know if we got a good conclusion, or if it continued to add to the story of what was going on. And in some ways, I felt like maybe it tried to take itself too serious, because sometimes when you’re in environments that are fantastical, you have to remember, like, it’s important to have fun. And I think sometimes, in that scenario, it’s almost presented a little too serious.
Well, speaking of having fun, there are rumors that perhaps Rockstar Spud will be coming to WWE. If he does, is there a chance that we might get a rematch with King Maxel?
Matt: That would be a great matchup for King Maxel! You know, I don’t know, the first person that comes to mind on the WWE roster that would take on the incomparable King Maxel would be this Curt Hawkins. But I do believe Rockstar Spud would very much want a rematch, so that actually could stack up to be King Maxel’s first match on the plane known as WWE.
So is Maxel excited to take on Curt Hawkins at some point?
Yes. I will have to be completely honest with you: on New Year’s Eve my wife, Queen Rebecca, was there with King Maxel, and she had to physically restrain him from trying to hit the ring with Bray Wyatt. He has very much marked Bray Wyatt for deletion. He has a big spot in his heart to delete Bray Wyatt, and to assist me in doing such.
Is there any chance that we’ll ever get a full, real feud between the Woken Hardys and The Revival, or whatever Woken Matt would refer to The Revival as?
Maybe. I think that was … I think before Brother Nero was injured, I think that was on the horizon, and I think it would have been amazing. I am actually very fond of those guys, in fact, and I think they do very good work, you know, although they are both mortal vessels, they both do very, very good work. So, I would say, probably, what I would say about anything else in the WWE: never say never. I could see something like that happening down the road.
And a lot of this depends on when Brother Nero is 100 percent healthy and ready to go. It just depends what path he chooses to do it. Now that I have released him, and he has kind of refreshed himself, you know, if he chooses to be Jeff Hardy because he wants to be, that’s fine, if he chooses to be Brother Nero, that’s fine, if he chooses to be Willow, that’s fine. Whatever he chooses to be, I shall support him, because he is a good soldier in the Great War.
What would your preference be? To have Brother Nero back with you when he comes back?
Of course, yes. I would like to have someone that is on my same mental wavelength, so yes, I would prefer to have Brother Nero. I would maybe even prefer to, like, see the Charismatic Enigma come back, and then — just so you and all the spectators that are assisting and watching the Great War could actually see this transformation of him.
Yeah, I would certainly like to see that as well. Now, you appeared at Starrcade, which was very important for a lot of Southern wrestling fans, which you yourself and Brother Nero were, growing up. Do you believe that Southern wrestling fans are still a big part of modern professional wrestling, or have they sort of fallen by the wayside a bit?
No, I actually think they are still a part of modern wrestling, and I have to say that I would imagine a lot of the professional wrestlers that get to perform in front of Southern fans really find it a luxury, because it is … very enjoyable to perform in front of them … to just have so much love and enthusiasm for the general idea of watching a contest within the ring that consists of good vs. bad. And they are a very fun audience to perform in front of, honestly.
Times obviously change. We live in the age of technology. Fans are much more savvy. They’re much more intelligent than they’ve ever been, and that will probably continue to be a trend as we go along, but still there are gonna be those old school fans that still sit back and they just watch the wrestling match, and hoping that their guy — their favorite wins, and the guy they don’t like gets his in the end. And whenever you get to perform and wrestle in front of a crowd like that, it’s always a magical time.
What did that mean to you, to be able to be at the first Starrcade in almost 20 years?
I mean, it was nice to be considered for it, because myself and my brother, obviously, were huge fans the original Starrcades, which emanated from this area in North Carolina and, you know, the area we’re from … our home area. So, to be only an hour and a little change away from the Hardy compound was great in itself. And to be in front of my fellow North Carolinians, that was also great. It was very beneficial because, on that eve, as well, my wife and King Maxel got to attend and join me on that eve. So, it was very cool.
And I think Starrcade is a great staple, and I also think it’s very nice that WWE has brought it back, because it was such an important part of NWA and WCW, and I like acknowledging things throughout history. And I’m obviously a big buff on history. My soul has journeyed this world for 2,010 years, so obviously I love history. I’ve been able to partake in many, many important parts of it. So, to be part of another historic event that’s been brought back to life by the WWE is very, very cool.
Now, one of the first legends that started circulating about you, way back in the day, was the talk among hardcore wrestling fans of, like, “Oh, Matt makes all of his own gear. He makes all of the Hardy Boyz’ gear.” And, from there, you’ve continually reinvented yourself and been such a huge part of the driving force of your creative voice. What do you think that modern-day WWE Superstars have to do if they want to show their own creativity and blaze their own trail?
I think if you’re a modern-day WWE Superstar, there’s just so many more tools that are available to you, to allow you to get where you feel that you should really be, if you know who you are. You know, there’s so many great tools they can use, as far as social media. There’s so many great tools they can use, such as video platforms. And it’s a great tool in itself to be committed to what you’re doing.
When you are a performer, especially on the platform of WWE, people want to believe in what you’re doing, and the more things you can do to help them believe, and to join in, and to have an emotional connection to it, then the more beneficial it is to you. And now we’re in a time where technology is so amazing, especially for the individual, and there are many, many opportunities that are there to help better their cause.
The Royal Rumble is coming up. What’s your favorite Royal Rumble of all time, whether you were involved in it or not?
Well, that’s a tough question. It has to be… The Rumble of Royalty is on the horizon, and when I look back at those events … One of my favorite Rumbles that I wasn’t involved in — I was just disappointed in the finale, obviously — was the one that ended with Mr. Perfect and The Hulkster, and Mr. Perfect was eliminated. I wanted him to win that Royal Rumble, and I really loved his performance throughout that Royal Rumble. And I was just … towards the very end, I was very disappointed when he didn’t win, and The Hulkster ended up the victor.
My last question for you is that now that WarGames has been reintroduced to WWE, if the Woken Hardys were to take part in a WarGames, what would be your ideal matchup there?
So it’s who our partners would be?
Or opponents, or … I assume King Maxel and Lord Wolfgang would be on the team?
I think they would both do well, you know. I would almost say … I think an amazing WarGames match would maybe be … Lord Wolfgang is just getting ready to start his training now. I’d say an amazing match would be the WarGames, and they would actually be on the Hardy compound, and I would have Señor Benjamin prepare the battlefield for Maxel. And it would be myself, the nefarious Brother Nero, King Maxel, and Señor Benjamin. And we would take on The Road Warriors and the Powers of Pain.
(Check out our must-listen McMahonsplaining podcast with the one and only Matt Hardy Subscribe on iTunes or Google.)
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