At the 15th Screen Actors Guild Awards , actor Mickey Rourke , who gained critical acclaim at the time for his role in the film '' The Wrestler '' , had announced he would be competing at WrestleMania , specifically targeting Chris Jericho . The announcement led to a storyline confrontation between the two on '' Larry King Live '' , which showed signs of second thoughts from Rourke . On January 28 , it was announced Rourke 's spokesperson that the actor would not compete at the event , but would still be in attendance . Jericho 's narrative subsequently evolved towards one of the themes from '' The Wrestler '' , which was the respect for older wrestlers after their careers start to decline , of which Jericho disapproved . On the February 9 episode of '' Raw '' , Ric Flair appeared to protest Jericho 's tirades , professing that the wrestlers should be respected , as they had paved the way for the future generations to make a living , leading to a heated exchange between the two . Over the coming weeks , Jericho was confronted by a number of legends including Roddy Piper , Ricky Steamboat , and Jimmy Snuka on an episode of '' Piper 's Pit '' hosted by Jericho himself . Each confrontation resulted in Jericho viciously attacking each respective wrestler . The following week , Jericho challenged Flair to a match . Although Flair declined ( honoring his retirement from active competition ) , he offered to be in the corner of Piper , Steamboat , and Snuka for their challenge against Jericho in a handicap match . Jericho accepted the challenge , but subsequently attacked and bloodied Flair
15th Screen Actors Guild Awards
15th Screen Actors Guild Awards
WrestleMania XXV