Trish Stratus Declined Repeated Playboy Offers Despite Vince McMahon‘s Pressure
LOS ANGELES, CA – November 12, 2023 - WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus revealed she consistently turned down opportunities to pose for Playboy magazine during her wrestling career, even facing notable pressure from WWE leadership, including Vince McMahon. Stratus explained her reasoning in a recent interview on the Pod Meets World podcast, stating the offers were persistent for years but fundamentally clashed with her personal values.
while many of her contemporaries, including Torrie Wilson, Sable, Chyna, and Christy Hemme, appeared in Playboy during their WWE tenures, Stratus remained resolute. “No,it’s just not for me,” she saeid when asked if she ever regretted her decision. “I’m like a Tomboy, even though I am known as a sex symbol, I suppose. That is not me. That is my character. it was not even an option.’That is not me.'”
Stratus also expressed discomfort with the increasing emphasis on lingerie-based photoshoots within WWE, specifically referencing the annual Divas Magazine swimsuit issues. She described feeling awkward when the publication shifted towards lingerie and attempted to mitigate the situation by creating a “sports lingerie look” for her own photoshoots.
The Playboy offers intensified, with McMahon directly lobbying Stratus to participate. “Vince, oh my God, hounded me like crazy,” she recalled. “He’s like, ‘It’s a great opportunity.’ I was shown during that time, ‘If you turn this down, we’re going to give your opportunity to her. Are you sure?’ ‘No, I still don’t want to do it. Thank you.’ They came to me for years and years, and I was like, ‘No.'”
Years later, Stratus maintains she has no regrets about her decision. “I do not regret it.It’s just not my thing. Now that I have a kid and everything, I can’t even imagine. That is my decision and I stand by it,” she stated.
Stratus’s career was defined by a character that often embraced a provocative image, but she consistently prioritized staying true to herself outside of the ring, a quality widely admired by fans.
