Karen Jarrett says she would not repeat the personal TNA storyline involving Jeff Jarrett and Kurt Angle.
Speaking on My World, Karen explained that the storyline became inseparable from the public narrative surrounding their private lives.
“If I could go back, I would not have done that storyline.
“I wouldn’t say, ‘F Vince Russo,’ for that because we were in a situation, that storyline was presented, and it was also a way for Jeff to get back in the company. That was part of the way I looked at it, whether it was right or wrong.”
Karen said the three participants performed the storyline so convincingly that many fans accepted it as reality.
“Did I know that it was going to turn into what it turned into and that the whole world was going to believe everything that we were doing?
“Obviously, all three of us who were involved did a great job because that became the narrative for our private life, but I wouldn’t go back and do it again.”
Jeff Jarrett offered a different perspective and said he does not regret participating in the angle.
“The promos were biting. It was based on realism. Me and Kurt, in the context of a match—Kurt is a genius at laying out matches. It all layered up, and I knew when we were doing it that it was good stuff.
“How many times have we said the Jerry Jarrett saying, ‘Personal issues draw money’? It doesn’t get any more personal than that with how we laid it out. So, I don’t regret it. Unfortunately, we’ve had to live with that, but I knew going in what my choices were to provide for my family and to at least give me an opportunity to get back up at some point.”
Jeff also argued that Angle possessed enough influence within TNA to reject the storyline if he did not want to participate.
“Kurt Angle was the biggest, highest-paid wrestler on the roster. He definitely had all the cachet. Dixie Carter was scared to death of him. All he had to say was, ‘No, I’m not doing it.’ If he didn’t want to do it, he wouldn’t have done it.”
Karen said Angle had already moved forward with his life and that everyone involved was able to work together backstage. Her primary regret concerns how the storyline affected their children.
“Kurt had moved on with his life. He’s got a beautiful wife now. He has a beautiful family. He had moved on with the wife that he’s with now and was in a great place.
“They’re in locker rooms together. They’re at the doctor’s. They’re laughing. Kurt puts my face through a cake, and I get down to the bottom of the steps and he’s hugging me, saying he’s sorry. He’s like, ‘But that was so good.’
“It all became too real for me for our kids. It’s one thing for us to deal with it, but then our kids see it everywhere. Our kids hear it everywhere. That sucks.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit My World, with a h/t to Wrestling Headlines for the transcription.
