Shawn Michaels and WWF Attitude

Michaels forfeited his title in February, claiming to have "lost his smile" to a series of injuries. Michaels was rumored to be unwilling to lose to Bret Hart at WrestleMania 13 in a rematch of the previous year's match. Despite claims of injury, Michaels was soon back on his feet, briefly teaming with Stone Cold Steve Austin to win the WWF Tag Team titles. At Summerslam 1997, Michaels refereed the WWF title match between WWF Champion The Undertaker and Bret Hart. The match ended controversially, with Michaels nailing Undertaker with a chair (unintentionally, as he was aiming for Hart after Bret spit in his face) and forced to award the title to his nemesis, Hart.

This would begin a feud between Michaels and the Undertaker that would last until the end of '97. Later on that Summer, he formed an alliance with real-life friend Triple H and Triple H's then-girlfriend Chyna to form D-Generation X, one of the most popular wrestling stables of all time. The group would engage in rebellious behavior, such as pointing to their crotches and telling fans to "suck it". Moving away from the family-oriented product, this marked the beginning the WWF Attitude Era. Michaels also began re-feuding with Bret's new Hart Foundation, which was now a pro-Canada stable. Michaels would taunt the Hart Foundation and Canada by engaging in acts such as picking his nose with the Canadian Flag and pretending to hump the flag.

In September at One Night Only, a British-only PPV event, Michaels defeated the British Bulldog to win the European Title, becoming the WWF's first ever Grand Slam Champion. In October, at Badd Blood, Michaels and Undertaker participated in the very first Hell in a Cell match, which saw Michaels being thrown off the 15 foot tall cage onto the ground. He won the match with the help of the debut of the Undertaker's brother Kane, which led to a title shot at Survivor Series against Bret Hart.

In November 1997, Michaels was involved in an angle where he "screwed" Hart in a controversial match in Montreal. In actuality Hart, who then held the WWF Championship, had been assured that he would win the match via a disqualification. However, McMahon, concerned that Hart was leaving the WWF and might take the belt with him (in spite of Hart assuring him that he would lose the title before leaving), arranged for the bell to be rung when Michaels applied the Sharpshooter to Hart, making it look like his opponent tapped out (gave up). Michaels was given the victory in the match and therefore was given the championship as well. This incident has since become known as the Montreal Screwjob. Several years later, on an episode of WWE Confidential, Michaels admitted he knew about McMahon's plan beforehand and claims to have apologized to Bret Hart later on, a claim which Hart says is inaccurate.

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