10 pro wrestlers who failed to live up to their hype
The contract was signed, and weeks of vignettes were aired. Video packages with trendy music and an ominous voice-over telling the wrestling fans 'they're coming.' And the world of wrestling will never be the same.
Then, their big debut happens, and they start to falter. Sometimes despite the best efforts of creative teams and marketing divisions, a pro wrestler who looks like a guaranteed draw ends up only making a minor splash.
Here are ten WWE wrestlers who were supposed to be the next big thing, but never really made it to the main event.
#1 Eugene (Nick Dinsmore)
Pro wrestling has had its share of mentally challenged wrestlers. Usually, this takes the form of a 'crazy man' gimmick like the Missing Link or Roddy Piper, but sometimes a wrestler is portrayed as being somewhat slow intellectually. Ric Steiner's early career is a good example of this.
However, the promotions avoid actually categorizing their mentally challenged characters as having an actual real-world disability. Which makes the debut of longtime developmental talent Nick Dinsmore as the mentally retarded Eugene something of a head-scratcher.
Worse, WWE's head of programming at the time actually thought Eugene would lead to big rating increases and merchandise sold. While the fans mostly responded to Eugene in a positive fashion, they were also clearly made uncomfortable by the crux of his character.
Eugene started off with a high profile feud with Evolution, but then drifted down the card until he was considered by and large a comedy act. Eventually, he was released and WWE has never looked back.
Why he didn't become a bigger star: Eugene's gimmick made people uncomfortable, and he was undersized for a heavyweight but too large for cruiserweight matches.