Dixie Carter turned down multiple invitations to appear in Dark Side of the Ring‘s three-part TNA Wrestling documentary, PWInsider has confirmed.
Carter, who served as TNA president for 15 years, declined several overtures from the production to share her perspective on the company’s history. Her role in TNA was foundational. When the promotion’s initial investor, HealthSouth Ltd, pulled out in the fall of 2002 amid a fraud scandal, Carter’s family business, Panda Energy, stepped in to purchase the company and installed her as president, a position she held until 2017. Her entry kept TNA alive at a moment when the promotion was facing near-immediate closure.
Jeff Jarrett, TNA’s co-founder, did sit down for extensive interviews. Jim Cornette, Vince Russo, and The Hardys are among those who also participated in the TNA episodes. Matt Hardy confirmed on his The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast that both he and Jeff Hardy each did more than two hours of interview time.
Hardy described the documentary as approaching Jarrett’s story through a redemption lens. “In speaking with Jeff Jarrett, had a great conversation with him a couple months ago, and he told me they were talking about doing this,” Hardy said. “Because not only did we talk about how Jeff Jarrett came out the other end in a much better place and how he has gained everyone’s respect from what he has done, we talked about the condition of TNA right now, how it is in a good place and it is actually thriving on AMC.”
Dark Side of the Ring Season 7 premieres July 7 at 9 p.m. ET on Vice TV with two back-to-back episodes. The first two parts of the TNA trilogy air opening night, with the third installment the following week. Episodes then continue weekly after that.
Beyond the TNA trilogy, the season will cover the following subjects:
Paul Orndorff, the “Mr. Wonderful” character who feuded with Hulk Hogan during one of WWE’s biggest television eras in the 1980s.
Ray Traylor, best known as The Big Boss Man, a cornerstone of WWF programming throughout the late 1980s and 1990s.
Missy Hyatt, the valet and personality whose career touched multiple major promotions across the territory and national eras.
The 2005 IWA-MS match between Necro Butcher and Samoa Joe, which became one of the most discussed matches in the history of the independent wrestling scene.
Zach Gowen, the one-legged wrestler who competed in WWE during the Ruthless Aggression Era.
Rick Wilson, an exotic dancer who had a brief run in WCW as The Renegade, a character modeled after Ultimate Warrior.
Dark Side of the Ring Season 7 premieres July 7 at 9 p.m. ET on Vice TV.
