Hulk Hogan openly detailed the extent of his prescription fentanyl use during his TNA run in the new Netflix documentary that premiered today, saying a pharmacist once told him he should be dead based on the amounts he was taking.
Hogan, who died on July 24, 2025 at age 71, gave the interviews in the final months before his death. The transcript of his TNA-era medication use came during the documentary’s coverage of Hogan’s six back surgeries and ongoing physical deterioration.
“You Should Be Dead”
Hogan broke down the daily regimen he was on during his TNA run in detail.
“I was taking 80-milligram fentanyls, two in the morning, stuffing them under my gums,” Hogan said. “I had two 300-milligram patches of fentanyl on my legs, and they gave me 6, 1,500-milligram fentanyl lollipops to eat. I went to the pharmacy. He goes, ‘You should be dead. We have never seen a human being take this much fentanyl.'”
TNA Executives Confirm
Eric Bischoff, who produced TNA programming alongside Hogan’s run, addressed the situation directly on camera.
“It was hard to see,” Bischoff said. “There were times when I felt really s***ty about myself for making him do it.”
Bischoff said Hogan’s back was in such bad shape at the time that he needed help getting out of bed.
“His back was in so much pain. I would literally have to go to his hotel and help him get out of bed, to get into the shower, to get ready to go to the show. I mean, he was contractually obligated to do it. He wanted to do it.”
The Spinal Cord Stimulator
Hogan explained that after a sixth back surgery, doctors recommended he get a spinal cord stimulator implanted.
“After back surgery number three, I can’t walk. Surgery number four, I go back in. Surgery number five, I go back in. Surgery number six, really getting over this crap,” Hogan said.
“Dr. Zeno said, ‘You need a spinal cord stimulator.’ Okay, what is that? They said it’s a battery we’re gonna put in your back, and you have a portable like a TV clicker in your hand. Every time there’s any pain, it shoots an electronical signal to your head and it blocks the pain. It gives you a jolt of electricity.”
Wrestling Writer David Shoemaker Weighs In
Wrestling writer David Shoemaker addressed what Hogan looked like in the ring during the TNA period.
“He wasn’t doing the basic bits of pro wrestling. All he could do was bleed,” Shoemaker said. “But obviously there’s a physical limitation to everything, and he showed us those limits in the ring at TNA.”
Hogan’s Own Reflection
Hogan addressed the cumulative toll on camera when asked if he would do anything differently in retrospect.
“I would change one thing. Started dropping the leg when I was in Japan. Arms used to be really huge. So why would you jump up and drop the leg and land on your tailbone every night for 40-plus years when you can use the sleeper hold and not take any bumps?”
Booker T, who was also interviewed, offered additional context on the physical damage.
“Every time Hulk Hogan did that leg drop, compounding on his back, every time. Those were the small things over years.”
Hogan said he imagined what his life might have looked like had he stopped earlier.
“I would have been like a normal 70-year-old guy that could walk around. Wouldn’t be limping.”
The documentary is streaming now on Netflix.
