bret hart had wrestled in the wwf for 14 years, since 1983. he was popular, wrestling alone or as part of a tag team. he became wwf champion five times. he was wwf champion when the screwjob happened. in 1996, he signed a contract that lasted 20 years. the contract was meant to last until he retired as a wrestler, and let him be part of wwf's backstage plans. this meant he would be paid a lot of money.