The Double Life Of Chris Kanyon

Dark Side of the Ring returned in a much more major way than Vice and its creators likely expected last week. Its Plane Ride From Hell episode made a lot of waves in the industry. Most notably the resurfacing of sexual assault allegations made against Ric Flair by a flight attendant. This week, Dark Side covered the career of Chris Kanyon. A talented competitor who spent most of his life trying to hide his homosexuality and unknowingly battling bipolar disorder.

His Early Career And Arrival In WCW

After introducing some of the wrestlers and friends of Kanyon that will contribute to the episode, his life before wrestling is briefly covered. When sent to see a chaplain in high school, Kanyon told him that he was gay. It was at that point in his life he was told it was wrong which further convinced Kanyon he should keep his sexuality a secret. In fact, he attempted to bury it so deep that he was outwardly homophobic.

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Kanyon's road to wrestling was a somewhat unconventional one. His first trainer was The Fabulous Moolah, who had almost exclusively trained women up until that point. Despite the different start than others to his career, it clearly worked and he was obviously good as he landed himself a starring role in WCW by the mid-1990s.

It's at this point James Mitchell, better known to fans as wrestling's Sinister Minister, interjects and reveals how he discovered Kanyon was gay. When moving house, Kanyon's cousin dropped a box filled with gay pornography. When asked why he had it, Kanyon nervously claimed it must have been Mitchell playing a rib. Mitchell would call Kanyon's cousin to cover for him, claiming it was his box of movies.

Masking Up As Mortis

Kanyon got the biggest break of his career to date in WCW when he was selected to assume the role of Mortis. A wrestling character based on Mortal Kombat to go up against Glacier, the infamous persona Ray Lloyd assumed that was inspired by Sub Zero. Not only did it feel like a big deal at the time, but it also allowed Kanyon to get over without having to talk much. Despite his talent between the ropes, he was reluctant to cut promos through fear people would laugh at his lisp. Plus, the gimmick allowed him to hide behind a mask, which also appeared to make him feel more comfortable. Sadly, the arrival of the nWo halted the push of Mortis and Sub-Zero.

Mitchell lived with Kanyon at the time, revealing that he would print out conversations he had with men online and keep them in a locked box. He thinks that deep down, he hoped that someone would find the box one day, like when his cousin found his movie collection, and his secret would be out without him needing to actually say anything. It was also during this time that Mitchell started to witness the first signs of Kanyon's bipolar disorder.

Kanyon would take his frustrations out on Mitchell, seemingly becoming a different person. One time he choked Mitchell to the point that he blacked out. When Mitchell came too, Kanyon was incredibly apologetic. It even resulted in an incident between the two where Mitchell pulled a gun through fear that one day Kanyon would inadvertently go too far and choke him to death.

Kanyon would hold lavish parties, inviting all of his friends. Women would throw themselves at him, but being gay, he had no interest. One of the women relayed to Mitchell that she thought Kanyon might be gay. Upon hearing that, Kanyon's paranoia got worse and he hatched a plan. He asked Mitchell to help him film a homemade pornographic movie showing him having sex with a woman. He planned on showing the tape to other wrestlers.

Mitchell agreed to help, setting everything up in a hotel room. Kanyon never showed, so Mitchell went into business for himself, making a tape in which the woman was wearing Kanyon's Mortis mask. Kanyon's reaction to the tape the following morning was what resulted in Mitchell pulling a gun. He admits on the episode that he was ready to shoot Kanyon if he needed to, even researching the laws around self-defense and what you can legally do if you fear for your life.

His Quick Rise And Fall In WWE

Kanyon was picked up by WWE when Vince McMahon bought out WCW and had a promising start, even holding two titles at the same time. However, an injury, and how he reacted to it, derails his career for well over a year. When he comes back, WWE dresses him as Boy George and has him emerge from a giant present, serenading The Deadman. The Undertaker reacts by delivering an incredibly one-sided beating to Kanyon which included a very stiff chair shot to the head.

The guests are divided over what WWE was doing at this point in Kanyon's career. Some think they heard Kanyon was gay and wanted to mess with him, while others don't believe WWE would have done that with someone they paid and waited for while he recovered from a long-term injury. His WWE career would wind down after that, at which point he would train new stars while working the indies.

Kanyon Finally Comes Out To The Fans

It was at an indie show that he finally came out to the fans. He decided he wanted to be an openly gay wrestler and even contacted WWE, suggesting to Stephanie McMahon that he could be a leader in that arena for them. While Stephanie did reply at first, Kanyon would never return to WWE. After his time with the company came to an end, he attended live events where he would yell at performers and even confronted Vince after managing to get into a WrestleMania after-party.

Kanyon would eventually find himself in a regular spot on the Howard Stern show. He was so comfortable with his sexuality at that point he would openly joke about it. However, he continued to accuse WWE of firing him for being gay. John Cena would appear on the show, not at the same time as Kanyon, and relay that no one in WWE even knew he was gay when he got let go. Cena said that Kanyon simply wasn't good enough to succeed in WWE. Ric Flair would call into the show at a later date, backing up Cena's comments and defending WWE. Kanyon was on the show that day which resulted in a heated back and forth between him and Flair.

Kanyon's in-ring ability had gone downhill by 2010. Although it didn't seem to be affecting him, Mitchell admits that deep down, he knew the last time he saw him that he would never see him again. In 2010, Kanyon was found dead after taking an overdose, and his cause of death was determined to be suicide. The episode ends with those close to him, including Brian Cage and The Young Bucks who he helped train, speaking of how his coming out opened the door for so many others in the industry today.