"Anyone can always come to me, they've always been able to come to me and tell me if anything is out of line."
These were the words of Vince McMahon during his appearance on Larry King Live in March 1992.
The then-owner of the World Wrestling Federation (now WWE) had been forced to defend his company after allegations that referees and backstage staff had sexually molested under-aged ring boys.
Mr McMahon was blunt in his assessment of how any perpetrators would be treated under his watch.
"I would not have wanted to be that guy, because any of my wrestlers would have broken his neck, you just don't do things like that," Mr McMahon told King.
Alongside the sexual abuse scandal, Mr McMahon was also embroiled in a legal battle with the United States government over claims he had been supplying his wrestlers with steroids.
Mr McMahon was found not guilty and continued running his company for the next three decades, transforming it from a regional professional wrestling company into a multi-billion-dollar global entertainment corporation.
WWE thrived with Mr McMahon both at the helm and in the ring, playing the character of an evil boss who forced his employees to perform degrading acts for him before eventually getting his comeuppance.
With a net worth of approximately $US2.8 billion and ties to former president Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, Mr McMahon is unquestionably the most powerful man in the history of the professional wrestling industry.
Now, the 78-year-old is once again on the defensive, with a former staff member bringing allegations of sexual abuse and trafficking against Mr McMahon in the Connecticut District Court.
The latest allegations against McMahon
Janel Grant lived in the same apartment complex as Mr McMahon, and claims the billionaire befriended her, offering her a job at WWE while also showering her with attention and gifts.
Ms Grant alleges she accepted a job at the company, but that their relationship took a turn when Mr McMahon began repeatedly pressing for a sexual relationship, which she relented to.
From 2019, Ms Grant experienced repeated sexual abuse from Mr McMahon, who shared sexually explicit photos and videos of her with other staff members, the suit alleges.
She alleges Mr McMahon then began directing her to have sex with other coworkers including John Laurinaitis, a former wrestler who performed under the name Johnny Ace.
Mr McMahon also allegedly used the promise of sex with Ms Grant as a bargaining chip in contract negotiations with a WWE wrestler, identified as former UFC Champion Brock Lesnar by the Wall Street Journal.
The suit alleges Mr McMahon took control of Ms Grant's life, choosing a doctor to serve as her personal physician while subjecting her to multiple degrading and physically abusive acts.
"In her years of experience with Mr McMahon, she knew her requests to stop would be ignored at best or used to destroy her career and reputation at worst," the suit alleges.
In 2022, Mr McMahon allegedly told Grant that his wife had found out about the affair, and pressured her to sign a non-disclosure agreement and accept instalment payments for her cooperation.
It is an account of events that Mr McMahon has vehemently denied.
"I stand by my prior statement that Ms Grant's lawsuit is replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and is a vindictive distortion of the truth," he said in a statement.
"I intend to vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations, and look forward to clearing my name."
This is not the first time that Mr McMahon has been accused of sexual misconduct, nor the first time he has been accused of using his significant financial position to address allegations.
Uncovering a history of alleged abuse
Mr McMahon has been dogged by allegations of misconduct and sexual assault, with incidents stemming back to at least 1986.
Rita Chatterton, a female referee who worked for the WWE throughout the 1980s, claimed she was sexually assaulted by Mr McMahon in his limousine in 1986.
Ms Chatterton would make the allegations on television in 1992 after the statute of limitations had run out. It was later revealed Mr McMahon reached a multi-million-dollar settlement with Ms Chatterton.
"Mr McMahon denies and always has denied raping Ms Chatterton and he settled the case solely to avoid the cost of litigation," Mr McMahon's lawyer, Jerry McDevitt, said of the settlement.
In 2006, Mr McMahon made local headlines in Florida after being accused of sexual assault by a staff member at a tanning salon.
The staff member claimed Mr McMahon showed her naked photos of himself before attempting to kiss and grope her.
In the police report from the incident, investigators state: "There is probable cause to believe that Vince McMahon did actually and intentionally touch against the will of [the victim]", but Mr McMahon was not charged over the incident.
In 2022, hush-money payments were uncovered by the Wall Street Journal, revealing millions of dollars had been paid to four women, including former wrestlers, contractors and staff that say they had been coerced into sexual encounters with Mr McMahon.
Mr Laurinaitis, who was also named in the report, was put on administrative leave by the company and subsequently fired.
In response to the allegations, Mr Laurinaitis's lawyer said his client was in fact "a victim in this case, not a predator" and that "the truth will come out".
"Read the allegations. Read the Federal Statute. Power, control, employment supervisory capacity, dictatorial sexual demands with repercussions if not met. Count how many times in the complaint Vince exerts control over both of them," the lawyer said.
Removed, returned and removed again from power
Following the reports that Mr McMahon had silenced staff with secret payments, he announced his immediate retirement in June 2022.
His daughter Stephanie McMahon, who has also appeared on-screen as a performer and wrestler for WWE, was appointed as interim CEO.
Ms McMahon was also appointed as part of a special investigation committee that looked into her father's misconduct.
The committee found that he had sent out nearly $US20 million in unregistered payments, the majority of which went to settling sexual misconduct allegations dating back more than a decade.
In SEC filings, the payments were noted as "immaterial accounting errors".
However, Ms Grant alleges the investigation was "a sham", with the committee not bothering to interview her despite her willingness to cooperate.
In January 2023, with the internal investigation concluded, Mr McMahon was unanimously voted back in as executive chairman of the board.
In a statement, Mr McMahon said his presence was critical for the company to negotiate its media rights and the eventual sale of the company in a $US21.4 billion merger with UFC.
"The only way for WWE to fully capitalize on this opportunity is for me to return as executive chairman and support the management team in the negotiations for our media rights and to combine that with a review of strategic alternatives," the statement said.
But the latest allegations appear to have made Mr McMahon's position as executive chairman untenable.
WWE moves on from McMahon
With sponsors announcing their intention to pause promotional activities with WWE following Ms Grant's allegations, Mr McMahon once again resigned from his role.
Ms Grant claims a culture of sexual misconduct exists at WWE, contrasting with the child-friendly image the company has fought to maintain in recent years.
But the company seems resolute to move past the allegations and past Mr McMahon.
Paul Levesque, who is both WWE's chief content officer and Mr McMahon's son-in-law, said at press conference following a live event that he had not even looked at the accusations.
"I don't even want to get bogged down in the negatives of it, I just want to focus on the positives and where we're going," Mr Levesque said.
When pressed on what the company was doing to ensure the safety of its staff, Mr Levesque intimated that work was underway.
"That is a very important thing to us, a very important topic to us. It's as simple as: everything possible."