Former wrestler and World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Famer Scott Hall, who reached stardom as “Razor Ramon” during the peak of his career in the 1990s, has died, according to the WWE. He was 63-years-old.
Hall, a two-time WWE Hall of Fame inductee, broke his hip last month. PWTorch reported severe health complications during surgery to repair it over the weekend. In a tweet on Monday, WWE said, “WWE is saddened to learn that two-time WWE Hall of Famer Scott Hall has passed away. WWE extends its condolences to Hall’s family, friends, and fans.”
Scott Oliver Hall was born on Oct. 20, 1958. He rose to prominence in the 1990s, becoming one of the most recognizable and popular figures in World Wrestling Entertainment (then WWF) and World Championship Wrestling.
Despite breaking into the industry in the mid-1980s, Hall’s first significant brush with stardom came when he joined WWE in 1992 as Razor Ramon, a charismatic heel billed from Miami and based in part off of Al Pacino and Steven Bauer’s characters in “Scarface.”
Hall quickly experienced success in WWE. His first run as Intercontinental Champion resulted in one of the most incredible contests ever, a ladder match against Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania X in 1994. Hall and Michaels’ instant classic was the first WWE match to earn a five-star rating from Dave Meltzer in the influential Wrestling Observer Newsletter publication.
Hall would continue to wrestle for WWE until 1996 before signing a contract with Vince McMahon’s biggest competitor, WCW, creating two of the most-talked-about moments in wrestling history. Hall and Nash, both coveted free agents who signed with WCW, worked an untelevised show at Madison Square Garden on May 19, 1996, along with longtime friends Michaels and Paul “Triple H” Levesque. In an unscripted moment at the end of the night, Hall, Nash, Michaels, and Levesque, known in wrestling circles as “The Kliq,” broke character and hugged in the ring, marking the last time until that point the four men would work together.
Hall wrestled with WCW until 2000, after brief stints with Extreme Championship Wrestling and New Japan Pro Wrestling before returning to WWE in 2002 as part of a reformed NWO faction. Hall worked again in WWE for a few months, including a match at WrestleMania X8 against Stone Cold Steve Austin, before being released by the company in the wake of the infamous “Plane Ride From Hell.”
Hall worked for various promotions over the next decade-plus, most notably Total Nonstop Action, another WWE competitor, before eventually coming back to McMahon’s offer in a legends capacity and being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as Razor Ramon in 2014.
Hall would be inducted again in 2021 as part of the NWO. Hall’s initial induction resulted in one of the great closing lines of a WWE induction speech. At the time, he said, “Hard work pays off. Dreams come true. Bad times don’t last, but bad guys do,” referencing his classic character’s persona.
Despite never winning the WWE Championship or World Heavyweight Championship in WCW, Hall is remembered as one of the most popular and influential figures in the business during his peak. Hall won 20 championships across half a dozen promotions during his nearly three-decade career. News of Hall’s death rattled the wrestling community, with tributes pouring in from fans and colleagues alike. He’s survived by his two children, Cody and Cassidy.