Earl Hebner was the referee for one of the most monumental moments in wrestling history; the Montreal Screw Job.
At Survivor Series 1997, Hebner called for the bell as Shawn Michaels had Bret Hart in the sharpshooter despite Bret not submitting. Bret was on his way out of the company and Vince McMahon wanted him to lose the WWE Championship.
Hebner was one of the few who knew about the plan to screw over Bret in the match.
At TNA Slammiversary 2024, Hebner returned to Montreal, but refused to help Mustafa Ali screw "Speedball" Mike Bailey.
Appearing on Reffin It Up with Brian Hebner, Jimmy Korderas, and Daniel Spencer, Hebner looked back on his conversation with Tommy Dreamer that led to his Montreal return.
"When they called me and asked me, I wouldn't give them an answer. I said, 'I don't know. I could get killed over there going back.' It had been so long since I had been there. They called me back again and said, 'What's the deal?' I said, 'I don't know Tommy.' He said, 'Do it for me. I need you to do it for me.' I said, 'I need security. I could get killed quickly. It's been a long time since I've been there. Those people aren't going to be happy to see me.' I'm thinking someone is going to stooge the shit off. Some people who knew I was going to do it were there, and some didn't know. When I came out, I got the biggest boos in my life. Bigger than [Hulk] Hogan (at Netflix premiere). I was walking to the ring and people were going nuts. I said, 'I'm going to milk them.' I started giving them shit and when we got down to the finish, after the finish, 80% of them loved me. I walked back and I got a lot of cheers. It made me feel good," said Hebner.
Hebner previously said he and Bret made up years later over the Montreal Screwjob.
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