Dark Side of the Ring

Dark Side of the Ring is a Canadian documentary television series produced by Vice Studios Canada. It premiered on April 10, 2019 on Vice TV in the U.S., and airs in Canada on Crave's streaming and TV network.

The show focuses primarily on dark and often untold stories from the world of professional wrestling and is known for its research, interviews with key figures, and its re-enactments of the events described. Each episode delves into a specific topic or event from the history of pro wrestling, with a particular emphasis on stories involving scandal, tragedy, or controversy.

Production and Release
The series premiered on Viceland on April 10, 2019.

On July 23, 2019, Dark Side of the Ring was renewed for a second season of 10 episodes, which premiered on March 24, 2020. Beginning with this season, the series became a co-production with Canadian broadcaster Bell Media for their Crave premium television and streaming service as part of their distribution pact with Vice. An aftershow hosted by Chris Gethard, Dark Side of the Ring: After Dark, was also added.

On October 19, 2020, Dark Side of the Ring was renewed for a third season of 14 episodes, which premiered on May 6, 2021. Vice TV aired a talk show titled Dark Side Of The Ring: Confidential on March 9, 2021 with Conrad Thompson talking to series creators Evan Husney and Jason Eisener in a roundtable discussions on the first two seasons with never-before-seen moments, unanswered questions and secrets uncovered and talking speaking guests about what happened.

A fourth season of ten episodes was announced on April 11, 2023, and premiered on May 30. The fifth season of ten episodes premiered on March 5, 2024.

Reception
Dark Side of the Ring was Viceland's highest-rated series premiere among viewers in the key demographic. The first season won the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Award for Best Pro Wrestling DVD/Streaming Documentary of 2019.

The season 2 finale "The Final Days of Owen Hart" won the same award for 2020, and was the highest-rated program in Vice network history, at 626,000 viewers.

The two episodes on Brian Pillman won the award in 2021, and the episode "Chris and Tammy" won in 2023.

Spin-offs
In December 2020, Vice ordered two spin-off series: Dark Side of Football and Dark Side of the 90s, which premiered on May 13 and July 15, 2021 respectively.

In 2022, the network ordered an additional spin-off Dark Side of Comedy.

In 2023, the network ordered Dark Side of the 2000s which premiered on July 18, 2023.