(NEXSTAR) — Scott Hall, a legendary professional wrestler who changed the wrestling industry when he left WWE and launched the New World Order in WCW, has died at 63.
Hall recently suffered multiple heart attacks at a hospital in Marietta, Ga. while recovering from surgery to fix a broken hip. Monday afternoon, longtime friend and fellow wrestler Sean Waltman confirmed to TMZ Sports that Hall had been removed from life support. The news of his death was confirmed by an “in memory of” graphic at the beginning of WWE RAW.
Hall was a 2-time inductee to WWE’s Hall of Fame for his work as “The Bad Guy” Razor Ramon and as a member of the nWo faction that included Waltman, Kevin Nash, and Hulk Hogan. Over his 20-year career, Hall is likely best known for his time with the nWo. The group, along with WWE’s “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, helped propel professional wrestling to television rating heights that likely won’t be seen again. Additionally, Hall helped change the way wrestlers were paid by making guaranteed money for performers a normal business practice.
Hall’s wrestling career started in the mid-1980s. In the early 90s, he assumed the Razor Ramon character in WWE and won multiple championships. His ladder match with Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania X at Madison Square Garden is highly regarded as a trendsetting match and one of the best in WrestleMania history.
When he jumped to WCW in 1996, the wrestling industry was largely viewed as a monopoly. While other promotions existed, few people believed anyone could match the success of Vince McMahon’s WWE. However, Hall and the nWo helped lead WCW’s shows to record ratings, eventually defeating WWE for 83 straight weeks.
In addition to being one of wrestling’s top in-ring performers, Hall was one of its best talkers. He had the ability to make thousands of people erupt by delivering just two words: “Hey, yo!”
In the later part of his career, Hall began to struggle with addiction and alcoholism. In numerous interviews, Hall was quoted as saying he had been to rehab 12 times. In 2013, fellow wrestlers Diamond Dallas Page and Jake “The Snake” Roberts called Hall and encouraged him to move in with them at Page’s home in Georgia and get sober. Though Hall would continue to struggle with sobriety, he largely turned his life around which led to his first induction into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2014.
During a tearful speech, Hall thanked fellow wrestlers and fans for sticking with him through the good and the tough times.
“Hard work pays off, dreams come true. Bad times don’t last, but bad guys do,” Hall said.
In the years that followed, Hall would make sporadic appearances on television often sharing his sobriety story or helping younger wrestlers learn the business. He last appeared on WWE television at WrestleMania 2021 in Tampa, Florida.
In preparing for his friend’s death, Nash wrote on Instagram: “As we prepare for life without him, just remember there goes a great guy you ain’t going to see another one like him again.”
“I couldn’t love a human being any more than I do you,” wrote Nash.