Former NFL quarterback Kordell Stewart was drafted in the second round of the 1995 draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers and played 11 seasons in the league, earning the nickname “Slash” for his ability to play multiple offensive positions.
Now, over 20 years after his last time stepping on a football field, Stewart will be the subject of an upcoming documentary, Kordell Stewart: Slash & Burn, debuting on HBO Max on October 27.
“For a generation of football fans, former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kordell Stewart was one of the most electrifying players of the 1990s. Nicknamed “Slash” for his ability to excel at multiple positions, Stewart helped redefine what was possible for an NFL quarterback,” read a press release.
“But just as he became one of football’s biggest stars, a malicious rumor upended his life. Through candid interviews with Stewart and others who witnessed his brightest and darkest moments, Kordell Stewart: Slash & Burn explores the personal toll of scrutiny beyond the football field while searching for the truth behind a story that followed Stewart for decades.”
During his playing career, Stewart managed a longstanding rumor surrounding his sexuality, leading to him calling a team meeting before the 1999 season and issuing a denial to his teammates that included “graphic descriptions of heterosexual acts he enjoys,” according to OutSports.com.
“I was a guy who stood up in front of the team and just said, basically, this is what’s going on,” the quarterback told KDKA radio in Pittsburgh in 1999. “A rumor is a rumor; you look it up in the dictionary, it will tell you exactly what it means. I’m Kordell Stewart, the guy who worked with you guys and … has made some great plays around this place. And I don’t want any fan or any knucklehead outside of this organization make you feel any differently about me as a player.”
Stewart penned a Player’s Tribune piece in 2021 detailing the personal and professional difficulties that stemmed from the rumor, and he appears enthused about the opportunity to delve further into its impact on him in the upcoming doc.
💪🏾💪🏾 pic.twitter.com/cpDDsKZ6Hu
— Kordell Stewart (@KSlash10) September 25, 2026
A Skydance Sports presentation and NFL Films production, Kordell Stewart: Slash & Burn was directed, produced, and edited by Brian Rivera.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.