Allegations Of Inappropriate Conduct Made Against Tommy Dreamer

Several allegations of inappropriate conduct have been made against Tommy Dreamer in the aftermath of the 55-year-old and TNA parting ways on June 17.

Dan Perch, an independent wrestling referee, accused Dreamer of threatening to blackball him from professional wrestling while he was backstage at a TNA event.

Perch tweeted:

"Tommy Dreamer pulled me aside backstage at a TNA show, telling me he would do everything he could to make sure I don't earn a job in the wrestling business. All I did was try to learn and grow from experiences, though his words were very discouraging for a young student to hear.

"I didn't set out to prove him wrong, I simply thanked him for their advice and went another direction. The pro wrestling business is for everybody, you just have to find where you fit in best. Don't perform just for someone else’s ideal vision, perform out of your own passion!!

"Take critique like a professional and thank them for their time. However don’t allow someone to ‘coercive’ you. Share your burning desire to succeed in the pro wrestling business with others who appreciate you! This is a community, not a tyranny."

The indy referee clarified the incident happened at an IMPACT Provincial Wrestling Federation event in September 2022, adding:

"Texas ‘22. Thought my story may help others who had similar encounters with somebody in the pro wrestling industry. I'm sure they had nothing against me, I was just an extra, one of hundreds on any given day in any given town, happy to help the team in any way.

"Like I understand the moment and situation in ring /I was a referee looking right at the face corner when the cutoff happened, thus seeing the heels break the rules. It reinstated the importance of asking wrestlers before the match, certain questions prior to a match.

"In that instance backstage I'm sure they were using me to prove a point, from some prior instance with another extra or referee making a mistake. I came into the night looking to learn and improve, and they thought I was intending to take somebody’s spot within the company.

"No doubt the pro wrestling business is a close community, where we all want to see the industry succeed into the next generations… and you know darn well you’re going to run into that person again, and most likely share the ring with them.

"No spite, just a lesson I learned I wanted to share with others. Especially referees, we don’t always get valued the way we should but that’s the way it’s always been. We are more or less volunteering our time to a role based on trust, and that level varies with each promotion.

"However making an example out of a student in the way they did always felt strange and misguided. After years of reflection, I thought it was appropriate to share with the community. Those who 'get it' understand and those who don't, simply won't.

"So I'm enjoying spending time with the Family and hope you are too. My love and gratitude to Mom's Dad's and all those in the pro wrestling business who dedicate their time helping others. Inspiration + Motivation."

This led to further allegations being made against Dreamer over the weekend, including from Ring of Honor's Carlie Bravo in a since-deleted tweet, who accused Dreamer of informing him he didn't know if he could market "'cocky black guy' to the world."

"He told me I was very talented but couldn't hire me cuz ‘he didn’t know if he could market ‘cocky black guy’ to the world.’ Needless to say, I’m on top of the game and never changed one bit. Run it up. F**k what anybody else says," Bravo wrote.

Independent wrestler Kennedi Copeland then shared that Dreamer introduced a spanking spot to a match they worked together.

"Hol' up are we sharing our Tommy Dreamer stories bc one time I told him I really wanted to take a cane shot in a match and he told me he doesn't do that with women so instead we did a spanking spot bc women amirite," Copeland wrote.

"Because I was young and dumb and impressionable and a people pleaser and still very new in wrestling and didn't know I could say no especially to a vet because I was always told, 'If you really want it, you'd do anything for it,'" she added.

According to Cagematch, Copeland and Dreamer were involved in the same match at a Dynasty show in March 2017, competing in a 33-person rumble.

Another independent wrestler in Dani Jordyn alleged that Dreamer insisted upon performing a crotch grab spot during a match they worked together. According to Cagematch, the two talents worked together on two occasions for Southern Honor Wrestling in October 2019.

Jordyn wrote:

"I've been waiting for this - One time Tommy dreamer insisted on doing a crotch grab spot, to me, in a tag match he was a fill in for. This had NO place in our story line. But he didn’t care to ask. I did not want to do this, said how uncomfortable I was, but I’m just woman, right.

"I was new in my career, should’ve trusted my intuition, said a firm no, and not succumb to peer pressure for this spot. This is the only thing that’s happened in my career that felt degrading bc I vowed to never let a MF try me on some uncomfortable sh*t EVER again."

Several names in pro wrestling rushed to Dreamer's defence following the allegations, including Dreamer's former colleagues in Mickie James, Missy Hyatt, and Dave Penzer.

A clip from an RF Video titled 'Sharing My Knowledge with Tommy Dreamer' from 2012 involving Mickie James also circulated on social media, during which Dreamer revealed he insinuated to James that she should undergo breast-enlargement surgery.

"I remember Mickie James. Mickie James is probably one of the most talented females ever and she's crying to me on the phone, 'How come they're not calling me up?' And I was like, 'Mickie, you need to look at the girls. What they have [gestures towards breasts] and what you don't.' I couldn't tell her that she needed bo*bies, but she got bo*bies and they called her up," Dreamer said in the clip.

Dreamer has long been a divisive figure within professional wrestling, and he was notably suspended by TNA (then IMPACT Wrestling) in 2021 after he made comments during the Plane Ride from Hell episode of Dark Side of the Ring that were deemed to be "completely unacceptable" by the promotion.

Those comments saw Dreamer dispute flight attendant Heidi Doyle's allegation that Ric Flair imposed himself on her and forced her to touch his genitals.

Dreamer said, in part: "Ric Flair's not going to try to impose by force any sexual stuff onto anybody. He's just flaunting, styling and profiling, doing the Ric Flair stuff where everybody's going to laugh about it. But obviously, someone took offence to it."

Dreamer also questioned why Doyle settled out of court with WWE and Ric Flair instead of pursuing the matter to the fullest extent of the law.

Following his TNA departure, ending his third run with the company after eight years, Dreamer is not signed to a major pro wrestling promotion.