On February 13, 1997, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) broadcast a special episode titled Thursday Raw Thursday from Lowell, Massachusetts. The show was intended to counter-program WCW and build momentum on the road to WrestleMania 13. However, the night is not remembered for a match or a violent angle. It is remembered for a solitary figure standing in the center of the ring, wearing civilian clothes, delivering a monologue that would become one of the most infamous moments in the history of the business.
To the fans watching at home, it was a heartbreaking tragedy. To the men in the locker room—specifically Bret “The Hitman” Hart—it was viewed as a calculated political maneuver designed to avoid a scripted loss at the biggest show of the year. The “Lost My Smile” speech is the ground zero for the animosity that would eventually explode in the Montreal Screwjob, serving as a case study in the blurring lines between physical trauma and bruised egos.
The Context: A Champion Under Siege
To understand the volatility of the situation, one must examine the landscape of the WWF in early 1997. Shawn Michaels had achieved his boyhood dream at WrestleMania XII in 1996, defeating Bret Hart in an Iron Man match. For nearly a year, he had carried the company, putting on stellar matches against Mankind, Vader, and Davey Boy Smith.
However, the tide was turning. The “white meat babyface” persona—the smiling, high-fiving hero who posed for Playgirl—was being rejected by a fanbase that was growing edgier. At Survivor Series 1996 in Madison Square Garden, the crowd notably turned on Michaels during his match against Sycho Sid, cheering for the psychotic heel over the preening champion.
Michaels regained the title from Sid at the Royal Rumble in January 1997, in his hometown of San Antonio, Texas. The victory was meant to reset his momentum. The plan for WrestleMania 13 was set in stone: a rematch between Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart. In this scheduled bout, Michaels was expected to return the favor from the previous year and drop the championship back to Hart.
However, backstage, Michaels was deteriorating. He was reportedly battling personal demons, substance issues, and a deep-seated paranoia that the locker room was against him. He felt isolated, unappreciated, and physically battered.
The Speech
When Michaels entered the ring on Thursday Raw Thursday, the mood was somber. Vince McMahon stood by with a microphone. Michaels, fighting back tears, delivered a promo that was raw, rambling, and undeniably emotional.
He spoke about the toll the schedule had taken on him. He mentioned that his mother had recently suffered a stroke, which shifted his priorities. Then, he addressed his physical condition.
“I have been told by doctors that I have a very, very bad knee. And that I may have to have reconstructive surgery… and I may not be able to wrestle again.”
He unclipped the WWF Championship belt from his waist and handed it to Vince McMahon. Then came the line that would define his legacy for years to come.
“Over the last few months, I’ve lost a lot of things, and one of the things I’ve lost is my smile. And I know it doesn’t mean a lot to everyone else, but it means a lot to me. And I have to go and fix myself… and find my smile.”
Michaels walked away, leaving the title vacant and the WrestleMania main event in ruins.
The Knee Injury Debate
The legitimacy of the knee injury remains one of the most fiercely debated topics in wrestling lore. According to Michaels’ account at the time, and in his autobiography Heartbreak & Triumph, he had consulted with Dr. James Andrews, the renowned orthopedic surgeon. Michaels claimed that Dr. Andrews told him his ACL was completely detached and that his career was in jeopardy.
However, many of his contemporaries tell a different story. In his autobiography Hitman, Bret Hart wrote extensively about the incident. Hart claimed that Michaels had a minor knee issue but exaggerated it significantly to get out of the match. Hart noted that he saw Michaels backstage doing backflips and moving without a limp shortly before the diagnosis.
“Shawn had a doctor’s note that said he shouldn’t wrestle. But in our business, you wrestle hurt all the time. Shawn just didn’t want to drop the belt to me.”
The skepticism was fueled by the timeline of Michaels’ recovery. Despite claiming the injury was potentially career-ending in February, Michaels returned to the ring in May—just three months later. He did not undergo major reconstructive surgery during that hiatus. Instead, he engaged in rehab. This miraculous recovery reinforced the locker room’s belief that the “injury” was a convenient exit strategy.
The Creative Chaos
Michaels’ departure threw the WWF creative team into a panic. WrestleMania 13 was weeks away, and they had no main event. The title was vacant.
To resolve the situation, the WWF booked a “Final Four” match at the In Your House pay-per-view on February 16, 1997. The match featured the top contenders: Bret Hart, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Vader, and The Undertaker.
Bret Hart won the match, becoming the WWF Champion for the fourth time. However, because the original plan for WrestleMania had been scrapped, the booking remained fluid and chaotic. The very next night on Raw, Hart lost the title to Sycho Sid due to interference from Steve Austin.
This hot-shotting of the title was a direct result of Michaels’ vacuum. The new plan for WrestleMania 13 became Sycho Sid vs. The Undertaker for the WWF Championship, and Bret Hart vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin in a Submission Match.
The Butterfly Effect: The Double Turn
While Michaels’ vacating of the title was a headache for management, it inadvertently created one of the greatest moments in wrestling history. Because Bret Hart was denied his title victory over Michaels at WrestleMania, he was placed in a program with Steve Austin.
The match they had at WrestleMania 13 is universally cited as a masterpiece. It executed a rare “double turn,” where Hart entered as the hero and left as the villain, while Austin entered as the villain and left as the hero (despite passing out in a pool of his own blood).
Had Shawn Michaels not “lost his smile,” the main event would have been Hart vs. Michaels II. While that match likely would have been technically proficient, it is unlikely it would have had the cultural impact of the Hart/Austin submission match. The “Lost Smile” speech, therefore, catalyzed the rise of Stone Cold Steve Austin as the top babyface of the Attitude Era.
The “Sunny Days” and the Return
Shawn Michaels returned to television just months later, seemingly healthy and with a new attitude. He was no longer the pandering babyface; he was arrogant, brash, and increasingly hostile toward Bret Hart.
The tension between the two escalated throughout 1997. Michaels, feeling the heat from the locker room for his previous exit, lashed out. In a promo on Raw, he made a cryptic comment to Hart: “You’ve been up all night… seeing sunny days.”
This line was interpreted by many, including Hart, as an insinuation that Hart was having an affair with WWF valet Sunny (Tammy Sytch). The comment caused immense strife in Hart’s real-life marriage. The professional rivalry had become deeply personal.
The animosity that brewed from the “Lost Smile” speech directly fed into the events of November 1997. Vince McMahon, fearing that Hart would leave for WCW with the title (just as Alundra Blayze had done), and knowing that Michaels and Hart despised each other, orchestrated the Montreal Screwjob.
Historical Perspective
Decades later, Shawn Michaels has admitted that he was in a dark place during 1997. In his A&E Biography episode, he acknowledged that he was difficult to work with and that his drug use and ego were out of control. While he maintains that the knee injury was a legitimate concern at the time, he also concedes that his mental state was the primary driver of his actions.
“I was a drug addict. I was miserable. I was unhappy. I didn’t want to be there.”
The “Lost My Smile” speech stands as a monument to the fragility of the top spot. It demonstrated that even the most talented performers can crumble under the pressure of carrying a company. It also serves as a reminder of the unique nature of professional wrestling, where a real-life medical diagnosis is scrutinized as a plot point, and where a man’s refusal to lose a fake fight can change the course of an entire industry.
Ultimately, Shawn Michaels found his smile again, but it cost the WWF its stability, cost Bret Hart his peace of mind, and forced the wrestling world to grow up very quickly.
