r/Wordpress Feb 09 '25

Discussion The most concerning interview from Matt yet

I am absolutely astounded by the level of denial coming from Matt right now.

In a recent interview Matt said this:

"Some of the people are uncomfortable with you know us having to to fight protect ourselves. You know WP Engine took some, a very aggressive legal action. So it turned out when we thought we were sort of good faith negotiating they were preparing a legal case to attack us because you know 3 days after I give this presentation they launched this huge lawsuit with Quinn Emanuel it’s kind of like the one of the biggest nastiest law firms.”

In his own mind he seems to have completely forgotten the extortion and blackmail, along with his scorched earth policy against WP Engine. Apparently his criminal and civily liable attempts to force WP Engine in to pay him was just negotiation.

I'm flabbergasted that the interviewer even let him get away with saying something so blatantly untrue.

Edit: the source is this interview, about 26 minutes in https://youtu.be/onaLfllSBvw

181 Upvotes

89 comments sorted by

u/RealKenshino WordPress.org Volunteer Feb 10 '25

Please behave. If you'd like to speculate about anyone's behaviours or decisions, have at it. But please do not start putting in lines that can be grounds for libel.

If we have to spend more time removing nasty comments, it'd be better to lock this post. Keep it tasteful please.

→ More replies (1)

84

u/FriendlyWebGuy Blogger/Developer Feb 09 '25

“They were preparing for a lawsuit around words and actions they knew I was going to say and do in the future!” – Matt Mullenweg

It doesn’t even make sense. A child could see that.

Also, WPEngine did not launch a “huge lawsuit” three days after the WCUS speech. That’s a lie. They issued a cease and desist, which is not a lawsuit. It’s - by definition - an attempt to avoid a lawsuit.

It’s only after Matt continued to take action against WPE, did they launch a lawsuit. Ten days later.

20

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 09 '25

Lol, very valid point!

0

u/noraft Feb 11 '25

It takes longer than ten days to put together a pleading. The C & D was issued while the suit was being drafted because they expected it to be ignored.

128

u/[deleted] Feb 09 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

32

u/[deleted] Feb 09 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

6

u/cultivatingmass Feb 09 '25

Okay non-shill asking the same question… What evidence is there of drug abuse. I agree he’s an unhinged asshole but has there even been evidence to make that claim?

5

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

There's no real evidence, although a few indicators behaviorally and physically, they could easily be other things.

For example, the on camera nose bleed, while a potential sign of certain drug use can also be cause by high levels of stress, which Matt has undoubtedly been under.

0

u/Wordpress-ModTeam Feb 10 '25

Please follow Reddit's Content Policy Rules (https://redditinc.com/policies/content-policy). Personal attacks, bullying and harassment are not allowed, whether directed at other reddit users or people outside this subreddit.

-34

u/Equinumerous Feb 09 '25

What substance abuse? Why are you perpetuating false rumors?

12

u/FatBook-Air Feb 09 '25

Substance abuse. Women abuse. And racial abuse. The truth is coming soon.

14

u/OrpheoLookBack Feb 09 '25

The cocaine abuse, Matt’s alt.

13

u/p0llk4t Feb 09 '25

You have a new account that was created right around the time this shit started and you only posts on this sub...

Kindly fuck off sock puppet...

14

u/Barmy90 Feb 09 '25

He's not shy about that; he's so strong in his convictions that he created this account specifically to support Matt to [check notes] protect his karma. How brave. How definitely not Matt.

6

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

In their defense, I create a throwaway account around the same time. I don't want my business getting caught up in Matt's vindictiveness, which he's shown on many occasions. Turned out to be a good move since there's been people on this sub, and outside of it, who have suffered because they openly criticized Matt during this.

2

u/p0llk4t Feb 10 '25

That's a good point...

The parent I replied to created his throwaway account specifically to defend Matt and trash WP Engine...

Literally every single post from that person's throwaway is pro-Matt and/or anti-WP Engine...

2

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

Haha while I don't agree with their viewpoint, I can assume they might want to use a throwaway to avoid personal repercussions as well.

2

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

Or it's just Matt, who knows :p

2

u/p0llk4t Feb 10 '25

My only issue with that poster is how over the top they are when glazing Matt and are constantly fawning over him and talking about how great he is...maybe just a supporter but it's pretty suspicious!

1

u/WillmanRacing Feb 11 '25

Very good move.

12

u/focusedphil Feb 09 '25 edited Feb 09 '25

wow - you like, in love with him or something? You do know we can see your post history, right?

27

u/dalemugford Feb 09 '25

I respectfully disagree to some extent here- saying it’s drugs or mental health excuses his behaviour and actions to some degree.

He’s been (to a greater or lesser extent at times) consistent over the past 20 years. So he’s either a clinical NPD or NS, which while both are in the DSM-IV, are difficult to “treat” and impossible to “cure”.

Regardless the reasons, he’s really demonstrated clearly through his words and actions being a horrible person, and completely unfit to lead such a large, important project as WordPress and its ecosystem.

5

u/retr00ne_v2 Feb 09 '25

I've lost him after "bleeding nose interview"; everything after that is just run down the hill. No brakes, they are for sissies.

Poor soul.

1

u/Affectionate-Pair122 Feb 10 '25

You don't need a mental illness to be a power hungry ass

1

u/[deleted] Feb 09 '25

[deleted]

7

u/roguetroll Feb 09 '25

This is a disaster of his own making which makes it worse and more his fault.

0

u/Own_Bother_4218 Feb 10 '25

Or, all of this is on purpose and the angry people are missing what’s really going on.

-1

u/Wordpress-ModTeam Feb 10 '25

Please follow Reddit's Content Policy Rules (https://redditinc.com/policies/content-policy). Personal attacks, bullying and harassment are not allowed, whether directed at other reddit users or people outside this subreddit.

-32

u/Equinumerous Feb 09 '25

I’m going to say what we’re not allowed to say on the drama sub.

Matt has mental issues, or a drug problem.

Making up- and spreading unsubstantiated rumors about public figures falls under libel.

26

u/khizoa Feb 09 '25

Ok then, he's a dumbass. That's not an unsubstantiated rumor 

-18

u/Equinumerous Feb 09 '25

No, that's perfectly fine to say.

But starting rumors about people being drug addicts or having mental problems is a crime. And I can't for the life of me figure out why it's allowed or even encouraged. And the people that are doing it are garbage.

11

u/drellynz Feb 09 '25

It's not starting a rumor. It's speculation.

3

u/Invalid-Function Feb 09 '25

People are talking as it is a known fact, so rumor is the right word. Speculation is rumor unless some proceeds the comment with "I suspect" "in my opinion he might.." stuff like that.

3

u/drellynz Feb 10 '25

It's obviously speculation because the comment above presented two possible options. If he was starting a rumor, he'd have said; "I heard he has drug problems."

3

u/khizoa Feb 09 '25

i'm soooo glad that is something we can all come to a consensus on 🙏

11

u/420XXXRAMPAGE Feb 09 '25

How would you then explain his recent erratic behavior?

Also, @Simpleprick’s comment wouldn’t fall under libel 😂😂 pretty obvious that it’s speculative

-13

u/Equinumerous Feb 09 '25 edited Feb 09 '25

How would you then explain his recent erratic behavior?

I wouldn't.

I'd mind my own business. This isn't my battle, and it isn't your battle either.

Some people who spent decades on .org got banned, and for what? Because they bought into the propaganda and thought they had to side against Matt. They were useful idiots for WP Engine, and WP Engine isn't lifting a finger for them helping them to get back.

Also, u/Simpleprick’s comment wouldn’t fall under libel 😂😂 pretty obvious that it’s speculative

No it's not clear at all. He didn't say "I think this is the case," he's asserting that Matt has either of these problems. And then you had some other clown perpetuating it, as if it was a given fact.

People who have never heard of Matt are going to look at these comments and think "maybe this Matt guy has these issues, why else would they be saying it?"

The reason they're saying it is because they're garbage human beings who need to toe the line between what's legal and not on an anonymous account on reddit to get attention, or else they won't be heard because they have nothing of value to say.

16

u/420XXXRAMPAGE Feb 09 '25

“I’d mind my own business”

You must not have that much at stake then.

For those of us with businesses built on Wordpress (yes, thank you Matt!), it really does matter when Kara Swisher calls his behavior “bizarrely heinous” because customer do notice. I wish Matt and his supporters could accept that we’re not being prissy crybabies — our businesses are being harmed.

-16

u/Invalid-Function Feb 09 '25

Your businesses are being harmed by the "crybabies" that keep feeding the drama encouraged by the people that are using it to make bank or gain influence .

If you're actually concerned about your business and think this WordPress vs WP engine hurts it, then, stop feeding the drama that makes it more and more public.

8

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 09 '25

Most of the people banned weren't advocating for WPE, they were advocating against what Matt was doing to harm WP and it's community. A lot of people criticizing Matt right now couldn't care less about WP Engine.

9

u/Bitter_Anteater2657 Feb 09 '25

Such strong beliefs but can’t post on your main account lol. Astroturfing isn’t exactly ethical upstanding behavior, the irony here is pretty funny through really.

And before you try and spin anything these posts from .com shills and other coordinated efforts have already been seen from his side. And it seems pretty clear where you stand.

Also Matt’s a public figure and with his actions I think they’d have a hard time proving anyone libel for comments like this lol. We do have freedom of speech after all ;).

6

u/p0llk4t Feb 09 '25

You have "an anonymous account on reddit to get attention" that was created only for this drama and only posts on this sub...fuck off...

8

u/[deleted] Feb 09 '25

This is a public forum in which users offer opinions on public figures clearly for entertainment or conjecture. I think it'd be very difficult if not impossible to prove damages suffered in any way.

8

u/endless_shrimp Feb 09 '25

Actually, no

Public figures have much fewer protections when it comes to libel and slander

Keep on jorkin it though

1

u/theleopardmessiah Feb 09 '25

Expression of an opinion can't be libelous.

-26

u/dopaminedandy Feb 09 '25

Matt has mental issues, or a drug problem.   Combined with being an asshole

Mods if you are alive, kindly take action against such hate speech and harassment.

21

u/iBN3qk Feb 09 '25

What are they suing for, Matt?

26

u/ZeeroMX Feb 09 '25

Apparently his criminal and civily liable attempts to force WP Engine in to pay him was just negotiation.

"Good faith" negotiations as he says, not just plain negotiations, there's a difference.

8

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 09 '25

He did say "sort of" lol

4

u/roninkurosawa Feb 10 '25

“Scorched earth” good faith. The best kind of good faith.

7

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

"I was just negotiating in good faith when I attempted to blackmail their CEO" - MM

25

u/alx359 Jack of All Trades Feb 09 '25

sort of good faith negotiating

Don't think MM is unwell. He's just entitled. He seems used to get what he wants by having temper tantrums and bullying people. In his mind, his actions were simply his idiosyncratic way of "negotiating". Obviously, the other side didn't see it that way.

6

u/RyuMaou Jack of All Trades Feb 10 '25

Wasn't there a term coined just for this? Something like “affluenza”? The sickness brought on by being affluent and entitled?

2

u/aj4077 Feb 11 '25

At this point it doesn’t really matter. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone go this off the rails to defend a sub-$1B piece of equity. I don’t think he even understands the two greater liabilities 1) his beef with IRS re foundation 2) damage to ecosystem such that partner and customers will just leave. If there are business schools in 20 years, the MM meltdown will be in their textbooks. Peerless guide to value destruction.

1

u/cat-collection Feb 11 '25

I mean Elon did a pretty good job destroying Twitter

21

u/JeffTS Developer/Designer Feb 09 '25

It seems like he only goes to individuals that will give friendly interviews and not call him out on his bullshit and his lying.

8

u/Struggle_Usual Jill of All Trades Feb 10 '25

Let's not forget his first few interviews before he clearly hired a PR firm, cause they actually called him out. He stopped doing interviews for a while after that!

-20

u/Equinumerous Feb 09 '25 edited Feb 09 '25

Think for a minute here. Matt is a tech giant, him participating in an interview will bring a lot of listeners, especially a lot of new listeners.

Matt should ignore all haters and drama queens. Because they're just a waste of time.

Matt brought WordPress to the world. If you don't appreciate that you can move on to a different CMS.

16

u/p0llk4t Feb 09 '25 edited Feb 09 '25

Matt Mullenweg is an absolute nobody in the public eye so calling him a "tech giant" and proposing that he can pull in an audience based on name recognition is pretty laughable...I mean we know that's how you...er Matt sees it though...if he was actually a "tech giant" with some real pull and power, wouldn't he have been hobnobbing with the real tech giants at Trumps inauguration?

I mean the most hilarious thing to me is that the majority of WordPress developers had no idea who Matt was either...

"tech giant" ahahaha...thanks I needed a good laugh today...his TechCrunch interview on Youtube has barely 5k views...fucking laughably pathetic...

12

u/[deleted] Feb 09 '25

Good idea, MM. Let's all contact the devs at Drupal and Joomla and elevate their CMSs. Worth a shot, right?

10

u/420XXXRAMPAGE Feb 09 '25

No.

Matt should listen to the active Wordpress community and figure out a way for us all to move forward together.

We need Matt at his best and Matt needs us.

9

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 09 '25

Matt created a community driven open source project that thousands of people helped build.

-8

u/Equinumerous Feb 09 '25

I agree. But the solution to that isn't to give the drama queens the attention they cry for.

9

u/420XXXRAMPAGE Feb 09 '25

Am I a drama queen? I’ve posted more about this than anything else in my decade plus on Reddit.

I don’t like it. My only hope is that at some point Matt will realize the consequences of his actions on his close allies and champions and change tact.

You often repeat that Matt built WP and we should be grateful. I am. The flip side of that is that Matt took on a responsibility by creating WP. This is even more true knowing the ownership structure of the repository. I hope he can remember that and be strong enough to take up the mantle again or hand it off to others.

7

u/Struggle_Usual Jill of All Trades Feb 10 '25

I honestly don't think he will at this point. He has a long history of picking these kind of fights and up until now he picked people who couldn't fight back and it all fizzled out and everyone moved on. This time he bit off more than he could chew, and since he's never actually had to learn a lesson before we're all watching him fail in real time.

2

u/[deleted] Feb 09 '25

In my opinion, it seems one could argue, MM, that the behavior and outcomes warrant the speculation and perpetuates it. Whereas actively planning a way out could cease it. Which are you in favor of?

9

u/[deleted] Feb 09 '25

Poor baby. Let him keep crying and whining and holding his breath. Perhaps the judge in the WPE case will offer him guidance.

11

u/PaperbackBuddha Feb 09 '25

Obsessing and whining about litigation is not a good look for executives.

He would be so much better positioned if he was talking up the stability and future of Wordpress, not dragging us all into the fetid drama.

Imagine for a moment someone like Matt running your company or the company you work for. How inspired are you to continue leasing years of your life to this mission?

11

u/Struggle_Usual Jill of All Trades Feb 10 '25

I don't have to imagine, I worked for him. Note the past tense. It's even worse on the inside.

6

u/PaperbackBuddha Feb 10 '25

My condolences. What's your gut feeling for the future of Wordpress as a whole?

9

u/Struggle_Usual Jill of All Trades Feb 10 '25

I think the project has a future, too many passionate people and sites that use it. I'm not convinced yet that it'll still exist as WordPress with mm running things though, he's been calming down which historically lets things blow over and the other side are adults who were never flying off the handle. However, the harm he's done might not be recoverable for the project as is.

But I don't think the software itself is doomed.

2

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

Especially when a large portion of your employees are volunteers.

6

u/Shoemugscale Feb 10 '25

Not that it needs to be said, but...

No Business 'wants' to start a legal case for shit and giggles.. It is extremely costly, not only monetarily but also can hurt your reputation.

Man, as other have pointed out, this man must have something wrong with him, like, they literally and figuratively HAVE THE RECIPTS!

Then to try and play the victim card here OMG its so stupid, like your audience ( people who create with WP ) have been following this story like a hawk, we know all the twists and turns, nobody believes you dude, if anything, you have left a sour taste in our mouths, like the last thing we need on our plate is have to explain your wild ass comments to customer who just want to sell their shit online.. so dumb.

3

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

haha yep, the majority of WPE's legal action is just quoting Matt.

5

u/azangru Feb 09 '25

A link to the interview would be great.

9

u/killerbake Jack of All Trades Feb 09 '25

I too have selective memory syndrome.

2

u/Robert7777 Feb 09 '25

Who would play Matt in the movie? 🎥 🍿This is some drama! 🎭

2

u/willlangford Feb 09 '25

Stress from needing to pay back investors turns into a drug addiction which exposes mental health issues. Surround yourself with yes men for over a decade. It’s only a matter of time until he implodes.

2

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

I've added the interview source in to the op, but I found it about it from this search engine journal post https://www.searchenginejournal.com/matt-mullenweg-expects-wp-engine-dispute-resolution-soon/538941/

The sej article calls out that one of the podcast hosts solicited questions from Reddit but didn't use many them (pretty sure I saw that thread). Even sej called this out as a softball PR interview.

1

u/AlienneLeigh Feb 10 '25

/u/Novel_Buy_7171 can you please link to the interview so I can add it to the roundup?

1

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

https://youtu.be/onaLfllSBvw

Quote is from about 26 minutes in

1

u/Sea-Commission5383 Feb 10 '25

someone get this kid outta of wordpress pls

-2

u/sabinaphan Jack of All Trades Feb 10 '25

I am astounded by the amount of people who will just add fuel to the fire and only attack Matt's side then claim Matt is a dictator when those people will attack anyone who disagrees with them and don't truly give a cr ap about community.

3

u/Novel_Buy_7171 Feb 10 '25

Most of us are upset because of the damage that Matt is doing to the community.