Shawn Michaels has now publicly addressed the explosive claims made by Bret Hart, pushing back on the accusations while maintaining a calm and measured tone.

The controversy stems from Hart’s appearance on the JohnnyIPro Show in November, where he didn’t hold back in sharing his belief about Michaels’ relationship with former WWE Chairman Vince McMahon. Hart made the allegation bluntly and repeatedly, framing it as something he believes played a role in the backstage politics of the era.

“I think that Shawn and Vince were sleeping with each other. I’m just telling you, I think I’m very close to the truth here. Shawn and Vince were lovers. I’m being dead honest. When I look back, it’s like I got caught between two lovers, and I got shafted and screwed over and Shawn was so envious and jealous of my position that he finally had to sleep with Vince to get it. I would say it to Shawn if he was right here. I would actually like to have Shawn come clean and say, ‘Look, we were lovers.’ Because I’m sure they were. If I saw either Vince or Shawn here, I would say I think you guys were lovers,” Hart said.

The remarks quickly made waves across the wrestling world, reigniting one of the industry’s most infamous real life rivalries. The long standing tension between Hart and Michaels has been well documented, dating back to the turbulent late 1990s and the fallout from the Montreal Screwjob. While the two men have publicly reconciled in recent years, comments like these show that underlying feelings may still linger.

Speaking on The Masked Man Show, Michaels was asked directly about Hart’s comments and whether he had been keeping up with them. Rather than escalate the situation, Michaels chose to downplay the claims and focus on his present day mindset.

“I hear whatever…doing things with Vince. I go, ‘Ah, what are you gonna do.’ Never happened. It’s the wrestling business. I’m never sure what’s out there to get a rise out of people. It’s the wrestling business, and I don’t put a lot of stock in that. All I know is we had a nice conversation in the room at (the) Hall of Fame. I helped him put his suspenders on. There might be things he doesn’t like. I understand that. There are lots of things people don’t like. Everybody has a right to their opinion on everything these days. I don’t begrudge anyone on that. I do what I can to focus on me and my life. We have a good time in NXT and I’m doing everything that I can to give back to the business that has been so good to me. It sounds silly, I guess, because good news is not clickworthy. I live a positive, joyful life. It’s boring as hell to some people, but I’d rather do that than the other. I also say that I don’t want to be a bitter old timer. I feel like we get enough of those. Not to imply that anyone is,” Michaels said.

Michaels also revealed that his most recent interaction with Hart came at the 2025 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony, where the two shared a surprisingly cordial moment behind the scenes. That detail stands in stark contrast to the tone of Hart’s remarks, suggesting that while public comments may stir controversy, their real life interactions have been far more respectful.