5 Current stars who would have been great in the Attitude Era
Pro wrestling fans of yesteryear tend to reflect on the Attitude Era as a golden age for the business. Indeed, it’s a time when WWE put on some of its most compelling episodic television and promoted some of its most iconic stars like Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Triple H, and Mick Foley. Some of WWE’s success from that period owes to luck and the sheer talent available. It’s also important that competition with WCW compelled them to push the envelope with edgier, more violent, more adult-oriented programming.
Nowadays, WWE skews family friendly, with kid-friendly advertisers and merchandising toward young people some of the key business considerations for the company. There’s little sign of WWE changing directions any time soon, but it does raise the question as to which contemporary stars might thrive if they were recast in the very different Attitude Era. This article looks at five WWE Superstars who would be specially equipped to succeed.
#5 Dean Ambrose
Dean Ambrose is one of the top stars in today’s WWE, his more cartoonish antics like assaulting a dummy to represent what he wanted to opponents as a face, and walking to the ring in a gas mask as a heel point toward the hardcore, the edgy star being awfully neutered by today’s PG standard.
Ambrose has shown glimmers of his hardcore sensibilities in various plunder filled matches for WWE and worked a more bloody, violent style prior to signing with the company. If he were permitted to cut loose and show more of his natural personality, he may well connect on another level—not only one of the bigger stars on the roster but the man. Ambrose’s recent heel turn was likely as not a step in the right direction for letting him show his best self as a sports entertainer, but it probably pales in comparison to what he could accomplish as an Attitude Era star.