4 Old-school WWE “Pranks” That Were Literal Crimes

WWE in the ’90s and early 2000s wasn’t just blood, sweat, and babyface promos—it was a lawless, testosterone-fueled frat house with turnbuckles. Behind the curtain, many wrestlers treated the locker room like a prison yard or a backstage comedy club (depending on the mood), where ribs (pranks) could make or break your standing with the boys. Some of those so-called “pranks” didn’t age well—because, well, they were actual crimes.

From fake gambling scams to almost crashing private charter jets, these old-school antics weren’t just executed in bad taste. They were the kind of things that would have you locked up, canceled, or both in today’s corporate-friendly WWE.

4

WWE’s Wrestlers’ Court Danced Around Extortion And Hazing

The Undertaker Had The Final Say

• Wrestler’s Court enforced a toxic power hierarchy backstage.
• Sentences often required cash, humiliation, or worse.
• Modern HR would nuke this hazing from orbit.

Wrestler’s Court in WWE wasn’t a funny backstage skit—it was pro wrestling’s equivalent of a frat house tribunal, but instead of red Solo cups and paddles, you had The Undertaker in a doo-rag playing Judge Dredd. If you were new, you were always guilty. In short: Miz got booted from the locker room for simply eating chicken, Raven was sentenced to two months of silence, Goldberg had to grovel at Jericho’s feet and Teddy Long; let’s say he learned real quick that selling Viagra in the locker room came with a steep penalty: chicken and beer for the whole roster!

While many sentences were lighthearted, others were cruel and petty. If WWE HR 2K25 ever found out, they’d clear that whole room faster than a fart in church, but here’s the kicker—if we boil it all down, this was organized workplace hazing.

In legal terms, we’re talking coercion, retaliation, and extortion, especially when naive rookies are pressured into paying for bar tabs or handing over cash to make the harassment stop. Imagine you walk into your new job, get fake-prosecuted by a senior VP for “bad vibes,” then fined $200 and told to stay silent for two months—or else.

3

Johnathan Coachman’s Fake Betting Ring In WWE

WWE Had Some High-Stakes Ribbing

• Jonathan Coachman was roped into a “sports pool” prank by Vince McMahon and Gerald Brisco.
• Real cops showed up and arrested him for illegal gambling in North Carolina.
• Revealed later as all a setup to humiliate the rookie, but this “prank” was fraud!

Welcome to the early-2000s WWE creative team, where humiliations could involve actual police. Jonathan Coachman, fresh-faced and eager, was tasked with organizing a $10-a-head football betting pool backstage by Gerald Brisco. North Carolina troopers later arrived and hauled him out for running an illegal gambling ring, but not before taking him to Vince McMahon’s office for a humiliation tour. And yes—it was all Vince’s idea. Thankfully, they returned him to the arena later.

What started as a dumb gimmick could’ve spiraled into a felony: organizing a gambling operation without a license is a crime in most states, even if the pot is imaginary. If money ever did change hands — then congrats: that’s racketeering, pal!

2

Someone Pooped In The Rock’s Lunchbox

WWE Jealousy Breeds Cafeteria-Level Assault

• Veteran WWE wrestlers targeted a young Rock with a revolting prank.
• Mark Henry (his locker neighbor) had to clean up the mess.
• It was jealousy-driven hazing—classic old-school rib, with a biohazard twist.

Imagine being The Rock—brimming with charisma, lightning charm, unstoppable entrance music—and then walking into the locker room only to find someone defecated in your lunchbox. That’s exactly what Mark Henry, who had his locker right next to Dwayne’s, found one day. Henry stumbled upon a bunch of guys snickering like schoolkids and quickly discovered the disgusting sabotage. He tossed the box and told The Rock not to leave his grub unattended.

Henry’s recollection on Busted Open Radio nails the moment perfectly:

“Somebody s**t in his food box—so, of course, I have to dispose of this and tell him, ‘Hey man, don’t leave your food in here.’”

-Mark Henry, Busted Open

The suspected motive? Pure locker-room envy aimed at breaking the newcomer’s spirit. A stunt this nasty was supposed to humble The Rock—but there was nothing humble about his reaction. Despite the biohazard vibes, Dwayne Johnson didn’t crumple—he devoured that embarrassment like a bad promo and turned it into fuel. The jokes and bullying backfired spectacularly and, in the end, the guy who got poo in his lunchbox went on to become WWE’s biggest star, then Hollywood’s highest-paid actor.

1

WWE’s Plane Ride From Hell

It Was A 600 MPH Death Box Of Criminal “Ribbing”

• Drunken chaos erupted on a transatlantic WWE flight in 2002.
• Sexual harassment claims, a near plane crash, and alleged public exposure.
• Resulted in firings, but no one faced criminal prosecution.

If you’ve ever wanted to know what happens when you mix jet fuel, free liquor, and unchecked egos, go ahead and Google “WWE Plane Ride From Hell.” What should’ve been a quiet flight home from Europe in 2002 turned into a high-altitude, high-attitude meltdown that could have gotten people arrested or far worse. The culture of criminal ribbing in WWE culminated on that fateful flight.

Legend has it, Curt Hennig pulled a shaving cream prank on Brock Lesnar (starting harmlessly, much like Wrestler’s Court), but then they got into a shoot-fight so close to the emergency exit you could practically hear the oxygen masks themselves gasping. Bad times. Ric Flair, allegedly in full “Nature Boy” mode, paraded the aisles in nothing but his robe and amade a flight attendant touch what no one ever asked to see. Gross. Goldust hijacked the PA system to drunkenly croon to his ex-wife. Kinda cute actually, but probably illegal.

Flair denied the serious stuff, lawsuits were filed, and WWE did what WWE does—fire a couple of guys, write a few checks, and pretend it never happened. It was felonious chaos in first class—another case of wrestling pranks that could have resulted in multiple charges, and, in this particular instance, huge fines or worse for WWE. In the age of social media, a Plane Ride From Hell like that would be a PR nightmare that could do permanent damage to the reputations of the talents and WWE as a whole.