WWE Rumors: Superstar Claims Company Used His Friend’s Design For Official Shirt Without Permission
Luke Harper may have just made his return to WWE after several months away, but a new report suggests that he has made some serious allegations against the company in the comments section of a recent Instagram post.
As reported by WhatCulture, Harper took to Instagram on Wednesday night, sharing a photo that featured several new NXT T-shirt designs, including those for wrestlers who have yet to become television mainstays for the black-and-gold brand. In his caption, Harper tagged both the WWE Shop and fellow SmackDown superstar Erick Rowan, remarking that in seven years with the company, he has yet to get a single official T-shirt, while all 155 NXT wrestlers have one of their own right now.
Although Harper’s complaint about not having an official shirt since being signed by WWE in 2012 didn’t seem to raise too many eyebrows at first, WhatCulture noted that the “real tea” was found in the comments section of the post in question. The publication shared a screenshot of a fan’s comment, where he recalled that Harper apparently had a T-shirt during his time with The Wyatt Family, one that included the words “he’s got the whole world in his hands” printed on the back.
In response to the fan, Harper explained that this was an official Wyatt Family shirt that “[his] buddy designed and WWE took.”
According to WhatCulture, Harper’s remark about WWE allegedly using his friend’s original design for one of his former faction’s T-shirts without permission came just days after he returned “to much hype” by helping Rowan defeat Roman Reigns at Clash of Champions on September 15. Two days later, Harper joined Rowan on SmackDown Live as the two — who previously held the SmackDown Tag Team Championships as The Bludgeon Brothers — beat down on Reigns and Daniel Bryan to advance their ongoing storyline after Sunday’s pay-per-view.
Prior to this appearance, Harper was last seen on a WWE pay-per-view when he competed in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 35 in April. Not long after, he revealed on social media that he had requested to be released by WWE, though this request was ultimately not granted, as Harper was simply not used by the company until Sunday’s big return.
As WWE has yet to comment on the allegations, further details regarding the situation are scant at the moment. WhatCulture likewise cautioned that it also isn’t clear whether Harper has re-signed with WWE after apparently resolving his earlier issues with the promotion.
