5 romantic storyline ideas that never made it to WWE TV
Over the past few decades, Vince McMahon, WWE's creative team, and some superstars have come up with several romantic storyline ideas. Some of these pitches made it to WWE television, including Trish Stratus' affair with Vince McMahon, Mandy Rose's romance with Otis, and Stephanie McMahon's angle with Test.
Meanwhile, other romantic angles never made it to WWE television. The company dropped these ideas prematurely for various reasons, including superstars refusing to participate in some of them.
Here are five romantic storyline ideas that never made it to WWE TV.
#5. WWE Hall of Famers Sunny and Ron Simmons
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After working for a few years in Smoky Mountain Wrestling, Sunny joined Vince McMahon's company in 1995. She spent nearly three years in WWE before the company released her from her contract in mid-1998.
During her time in WWE, the creative team suggested a romantic angle between Sunny and Ron Simmons (fka Farooq). However, the idea never made it to television.
In an interview with the Wrestlingus Show, Sunny disclosed that she was the one who refused to do the storyline:
"In WWE, the whole angle with Faarooq. They wanted us to have a romantic relationship on camera with all the kissing and everything like that and I said 'no,'" she said.
The 49-year-old explained that she rejected the angle because she was uncomfortable with the idea:
"It's just not my thing. I don't know. But I did not want to do the whole sucking face on TV with Ron Simmons. I just didn't want to do it. Yeah, and I was in a position at the company that I could say 'no' to things, so why do something I'm not comfortable with?" Sunny added. [H/T: Wrestling Inc.]
While Sunny left Vince McMahon's company in 1998, Simmons continued working in WWE for several more years. They are both now retired.
#4. Toni Storm, Dolph Ziggler, and Rick Boogs
Toni Storm competed for a few years on NXT and NXT UK before making her main roster debut on SmackDown in July 2021. Although she had a lot of success during her earlier years in WWE, winning the 2018 Mae Young Classic tournament and the NXT UK Women's Title, Storm's run on the Blue Brand was not as successful.
The 26-year-old competed in only a few matches before requesting her release and leaving the company in December 2021. After leaving WWE, Storm revealed on Talk is Jericho that the creative team pitched a love-triangle storyline for her involving Dolph Ziggler and Rick Boogs. However, the pitch never turned into a legitimate storyline.
"There was bits and pieces here and there, like, 'Oh, you're in love with Rick Boogs and the love triangle with Dolph Ziggler,' and that never really went anywhere. Just bits and pieces here and there," she explained.
While Ziggler is now active on Monday Night RAW, Boogs is on the SmackDown roster. He is currently out of action due to injury.
Meanwhile, Storm joined AEW following her departure from WWE. She recently challenged Thunder Rosa for the AEW Women's World Championship. Nevertheless, she came up short.
#3. WWE Interim CEO and Chairwoman Stephanie McMahon and Rob Van Dam
In 2001, Rob Van Dam signed with WWE alongside several other former ECW stars. During his early days in Vince McMahon's company, the 51-year-old turned down the idea of having an on-screen romance with Vince McMahon's daughter, Stephanie.
In an interview with The Dropkick Podcast, Van Dam explained why he refused to do the proposed romantic angle:
"When I first got there they wanted me to do a bit of a romance angle with Stephanie and myself. And my evil ex was like the most insecure b***h on the planet and I was like thinking, 'oh my God, this gonna cost me so much grief at home.' We had a talk, me and Stephanie, and she said, 'you know, just think of this like you're an actor'. I was like, 'that's cool, except you call me Joe Blow because I've been Rob Van Dam for the last ten years,'" he said. [H/T: Wrestling Inc.]
Due to Van Dam's refusal, the company dropped the angle. In 2007, the former WWE Champion left the company. Although he returned in 2013, he left again about a year later. Over the past few years, Van Dam has been active on the independent circuit.
#2. Owen Hart, Debra, and Jeff Jarrett
In 1998, Owen Hart and Jeff Jarrett became a tag team in WWE. They also had Jarrett's on-screen girlfriend at the time, Debra, as their manager. During that time, the company's creative team pitched the idea of Hart having an on-screen love affair with his tag team partner's girlfriend, which would then lead to a feud between him and Jarrett.
In her book "Broken Harts: The Life and Death of Owen Hart", Hart's widow Martha revealed that her late husband immediately turned down the idea:
"They then wanted Owen to have a scripted affair with Debra the valet, a buxom blonde (...) who was supposedly dating Owen's new tag team partner, Jeff Jarrett. The idea was that it would pit the two partners against one another. They went as low as to suggest I get involved by doing an interview for their monthly magazine with reactions to Owen's 'infidelity.' It was sick. Owen didn't consider it for a minute and demanded the entire idea be scrapped," she wrote.
In an interview with Sportskeeda Wrestling's Dr. Chris Featherstone, former WWE writer Vince Russo also recalled his conversation with Hart about the pitched storyline:
"I'll never forget, bro, he came up to me at a TV and he just said to me, he goes, 'Vince, this story idea with Debra and everything… bro, the idea of the angle and the story would crush Martha.' Martha would have gotten so upset. 'Vince, I can't do that to my wife.' And, bro, this is Owen telling me. As soon as Owen is telling me, I immediately said to him, 'Okay, bro, then we're not doing it. It's that simple," he said.
Hart tragically passed away in May 1999. A few months later, Jarrett left the company. Meanwhile, Debra continued working in WWE until 2002.
#1. Vince, Shane, and Stephanie McMahon
In 2003, Stephanie McMahon tied the knot with Triple H. Nearly two years later, she became pregnant with their first child. During her pregnancy, Stephanie's father, Vince McMahon, pitched the idea of having an incest storyline with his daughter, in which he would reveal himself to be the father of her child.
In an old WWE documentary, The Billion Dollar Princess disclosed that she found the idea disgusting. Hence, she turned it down.
"My dad did approach me about wanting to be the father of my baby in a storyline for TV, which again only the second time I've ever actually said no to him for something he wanted to do. That one was just a little too gross actually. It's completely disgusting. I don't find the entertainment value in it at all. And he is actually my father, so how could I even play that out? I can't fake kiss my dad like we were in love or something. It's just revolting all the way around," she said. [0:48 - 1:22]
When Stephanie rejected her father's idea, he suggested another incest storyline in which Stephanie's brother Shane would be the father of her child. Again, The Billion Dollar Princess turned down her dad's suggestion. Thus, the storyline never made it to television.