4 WWE Superstars who need to turn heel before the end of 2023
Over the years, many top WWE stars who have flourished as good guys or 'babyfaces' begin becoming stale in the eyes of the fans, with their clean-cut good-natured gimmick running its course. Therefore a common creative tactic has been to turn the star into a bad guy or 'heel'.
From Hulk Hogan joining the NWO, to Stone Cold Steve Austin aligning with Vince McMahon at WrestleMania and Seth Rollins turning his back on The Shield, heel turns have provided fans with some of the greatest moments in professional wrestling history.
With the year less than 4 months away from ending, we are going to take a look at 4 superstars who need to turn heel before the end of 2023.
#4 - A former WWE Champion turns to the dark side
In 2020, Drew McIntyre was undoubtedly the most popular good guy in World Wrestling Entertainment. His rise to the top culminated after he won the Royal Rumble match and then the WWE Title a few months later against Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania.
However, fast forward three years and McIntyre's gimmick is more or less the same. Whilst he may still get a good reaction from fans, a heel turn may just be the refresh his persona needs.
During a recent interview with Armon Sandler on Stay Busy, the Scottish Warrior was asked about if he is open to turning heel.
"People are calling for a heel turn, but I’m not willing to do that unless it makes perfect sense. We have a lot of equity in Drew McIntyre. I show up at Special Olympics and see the effect WWE and McIntyre has on people and I can understand (John) Cena’s perspective of not turning. Of course, he’s on a higher level and did so much outside the ring, but I can understand where he was coming from." Drew added: "For the right time and right moment and it was entertaining for the fans, I would be about that. One of my favorite runs was outside the company as a heel. When that dark side comes out, it’s pretty dark." (H/T Fightful)
#3 - The LWO falls apart
One of the biggest surprises on the main roster in 2023 has been the rise of the LWO (Latino World Order), consisting of Rey Mysterio, Zelina Vega, Cruz Del Toro, Joaquin Wilde, and Santos Escobar. The faction has resonated greatly with fans all over the world.
Last week on SmackDown, Escobar was set to face Austin Theory for the United States Championship before the young star blindsided his challenger before the match. This led to Rey taking Santos' place in the match and winning the title.
Although Escobar was happy for the Hall of Famer to take his place, a story between a jealous Santos and the newly crowned Rey Mysterio could soon begin.
#2 - Kevin Owens resorts to his old tricks
In what was the most feel-good moment of 2023, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn defeated The Usos in the main event of WrestleMania 39 to become the new Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions.
Whilst fans were certainly happy to see the lifelong friends end The Usos' historic reign on the Grandest Stage of Them All, their run with the belts has been fairly flat. Owens is currently injured with Zayn carrying the belts on RAW, this current split could very much lead to a returning Kevin attacking his tag team partner out of jealousy.
Both before their WWE careers and during them, Zayn and Owens have shown that as a team they are great but as foes, they can produce magic in the ring that rarely very few stars can do.
#1 - The EST of WWE becomes BAD
The biggest babyface in the women's division in recent years has been Bianca Belair with her winning and retaining championships at the past three WrestleManias in grand fashion.
However, after losing two titles in seemingly unfair fashion in recent months as well as stars like Charlotte Flair jumping ahead of her to get a championship match, a hard done by Bianca Belair may very much be looking to change her gimmick in order to get what she wants.
Speaking to the Daily Mail the former RAW and SmackDown Women's Champion gave her honest thoughts on her current WWE persona.
"So right now I feel like I’m a bit in between. I’m still in the groove I found when I got to main roster but there’s a little bit of the NXT Bianca Belair coming back. I feel like I’ve been playing by the rules, but then I’m seeing other people that aren’t and it’s like, wait a minute, hold up, let’s figure some things out." (H/T Daily Mail)
The next few months will certainly be intriguing when it comes to who the babyfaces and heels will be leading into the new year, Royal Rumble and ultimately WrestleMania.