Matt Hardy has revealed that WWE temporarily removed The Hardy Boyz from television after his brother Jeff Hardy expressed discomfort with creative plans involving the team’s breakup.
During a recent interview with The Stunner, Matt reviewed and fact-checked information from his Wikipedia page, sharing several behind-the-scenes stories from the brothers’ early years in WWE. Among the topics discussed was the company’s initial attempt to separate The Hardys and establish them as individual performers.
According to Matt, WWE had developed a storyline designed to split the popular tag team, but Jeff was uncomfortable with certain elements of the proposed direction. Matt believes the brothers were subsequently kept off television as a form of punishment. “There was a storyline for our characters and they wanted us to split up and there was a couple things that we were asked to do and Jeff was uncomfortable and didn’t want to do it so we were off TV for a while as a punishment, I guess,” Hardy recalled.
Although the brothers disappeared from WWE television for a period, they continued appearing at live events. Matt explained that the team eventually returned to television together because neither brother believed they were ready to move forward with separate singles careers at that stage. “But we still did live events, and then they put us back together because we knew we weren’t ready to separate and split up as a team yet.”
The Hardys would eventually pursue singles careers on several occasions, with both Matt and Jeff achieving success individually. Their careers also included memorable rivalries against each other, although the brothers have repeatedly reunited as one of professional wrestling’s most recognizable tag teams.
Elsewhere in the interview, Matt confirmed another interesting detail about The Hardys’ early WWE appearances, revealing that he personally created their wrestling tights throughout the 1990s. “I did. Yes. I sewed all of the tights we wore. All of the tights that you saw us wear on WWE TV in the 90s, I sewed all of those as well,” Hardy said.
Matt explained that the decision was largely financial, as professionally made wrestling gear was expensive during the brothers’ early careers. Rather than purchasing new outfits, he taught himself how to sew using an old family sewing machine. “So we didn’t have a ton of money, and tights were so expensive back then. So our mom had dad when we were younger. I dusted off our old sewing machine and taught myself how to sew, and then I started making our tights.”
The revelations offer another look at the challenges Matt and Jeff faced during their rise in WWE, from disagreements over creative direction to finding affordable ways to develop their distinctive appearance.
While The Hardys eventually established successful individual careers, Matt’s comments suggest their original split came earlier than either brother wanted, with WWE ultimately bringing them back together after the proposed direction failed to move forward.
