Legendary WWE wrestler The Undertaker has quite the dark character backstory, one which would be more than worthy of a horror film adaptation. Debuting in November 1990 at the Survivor Series event, The Undertaker is one of the longest-tenured performers in the history of WWE, and of the scripted sport in general. Undertaker, real name Mark Callaway, made his debut as a professional wrestler all the way back in 1987, and has been a top star in WWE almost since the moment he debuted using The Undertaker character.
The Undertaker is one of the oddest characters WWE has ever produced, as he's often treated like a literal zombie, and has displayed supernatural powers and superhuman resistance to damage on many occasions. The reason that kind of decidedly fictional persona works within WWE is that Callaway has always given it his full devotion, rarely breaking character, and always doing his best to make whatever crazy thing The Undertaker is up to believable in the overall context of WWE.
Obviously, professional wrestling fans are aware The Undertaker is played by a normal man at the end of the day, but the character is no less interesting and iconic than other great fictional heroes and villains. His canon backstory is also so twisted that Stephen King would likely smile upon reading a description of it.
The Undertaker's Horror Movie-Worthy WWE Backstory Explained
From 1990 to 1997, The Undertaker's backstory was shrouded in mystery. It wasn't clear where he came from, or what caused him to become a supernatural creature. The only thing certain was that his manager Paul Bearer was the one person capable of reasoning with him. The Undertaker grew so popular that he became a heroic figure by 1992, but only in the sense that he was now battling bad guys instead of good guys. As the WWE entered what would be called its Attitude Era in late 1997 though, more information about The Undertaker emerged.
In 1996, Bearer had turned against Undertaker, leading The Dead Man to tangle with new Bearer charges Mankind and Vader. In May 1997, not long after Undertaker won the WWE title at WrestleMania, Bearer teased that he would tell the world about his former associate's darkest secret. According to Bearer, Undertaker had purposefully burned down the funeral home owned by his parents as a child, killing them, and attempting to kill his brother Kane. But, it turned out Kane had survived, alive but severely scarred, and with a vendetta against his brother. Bearer, who it turns out was Kane's father thanks to an affair with Undertaker's mother, had secretly raised Kane to one day seek revenge on his older half-brother.
The Attitude Era was known for its complex, almost soap opera-esque storylines, and the Undertaker vs Kane story would be one of the best going at that time. The two would go on to battle at WrestleMania, and in an Inferno Match with fire surrounding the ring. Later on, Undertaker would turn evil and reveal that he had indeed set the fire on purpose, and had intended to kill Kane. He also formed a Satanic cult called The Ministry of Darkness around that period. In a further twist, revealed years down the road, it turned out Kane wasn't actually hideously scarred, but merely perceived himself that way due to mental illness. In more recent times though, Undertaker and Kane have mended fences, and usually watch out for each other.