5 WWE Superstars whose planned stints in iconic factions were scrapped
Over the years, there have been several iconic factions that have defined certain generations in WWE. These factions were successful because of the storylines they were handed and the stars who were chosen to be part of the stable, but would history have been different if the company went in a different direction?
Many of WWE's most iconic factions should have had different superstars added, but in the end, these ideas were scrapped. Several forgotten members of the locker room could have benefitted from the biggest push of their careers if it wasn't for last-minute changes.
#5. Mark Jindrak was originally set to join Evolution
"We filmed a bunch of stuff with Mark, with the intention that he was going to be in Evolution."
See the story of Evolution's forgotten fourth man in Episode 3 of WWE #RuthlessAggression, AVAILABLE NOW on @WWENetwork. https://t.co/naJLz7A4Yy
Mark Jindrak retired in 2018 after almost two decades in the business, with four of those coming under a WWE contract.
Jindrak was one of the stars who joined when the company purchased WCW and there was a buzz around the star and what he was capable of in the ring. This led to Jindrak being pitched to be part of Evolution alongside Ric Flair, Triple H, and Randy Orton, an idea that was raised by Vince McMahon.
McMahon wanted the star in the group because of Batista's tricep injuries, but Triple H believed that Jindrak's immaturity was dragging Randy Orton down and believed that an enforcer like Batista was needed.
The Animal was given a place in the group instead, and Evolution has since etched its place in history as one of the company's most iconic factions and sure-fire future WWE Hall of Famers.
#4. Kassius Ohno was set to be part of The Shield
Kassius Ohno was a popular superstar throughout his time in NXT but was unable to garner that push to the main roster ahead of his release. The Shield was created whilst Ohno was in developmental and reports suggest that Ohno was one of the names put forward as the enforcer of the group.
CM Punk was pushing for Ohno to be the main star of The Shield since this was a group that the former WWE Champion created, but in the end, his idea was shut down and the company decided to add Roman Reigns instead.
Seth Rollins confirmed this as part of an appearance on Edge and Christian's podcast back in 2019.
“What I think happened, it’s a little fuzzy to me because it was behind the scenes, weird stuff going on, Punk was looking to help turn the roster around.” (...) “He saw the main roster, he saw that there were some hungry guys in NXT that, sort of, came up the same way he did, and he also saw that there was a lot of complacency on the main roster at the time with a lot of the guys. Especially some of the younger guys were just there, just happy to be there. Not trying to get better every week, and not trying to dish storylines, not pushing the envelope for themselves and for the company, and it was starting to hurt the product overall.” (...) “So he wanted to get us in there, us being myself, and Ambrose, and I think, maybe, Kassius Ohno/Chris Hero, but I’m not sure. But the company loved Roman from the get-go, and for all the right reasons.”
Reigns has since become the biggest star in WWE following the success of The Shield, but this could have all been different if Ohno was the man chosen as the main star of the group.
#3. Baron Corbin almost joined The Wyatt Family
Baron Corbin is currently known as Happy Corbin on WWE TV and has had an interesting run in the company as a former champion, Mr. Money in the Bank and King of the Ring. All four members of The Wyatt Family have now been released by WWE, but could Corbin's fortunes have been different if he was added to the group?
AEW star Luchasaurus revealed that both he and Corbin tried out for a role in the Wyatt Family as part of an interview with Solo Wrestling back in 2017.
“I actually did a few promos with Bray Wyatt in front of the camera with Dusty [Rhodes]. They tried a few people, Baron Corbin kinda tried out for it as well. Ultimately, I think I could [have gotten] that spot, but then I got injured.”
Corbin had the right look for The Wyatt Family but ultimately was able to climb through the ranks with his initial "lone wolf" persona, a powerhouse who didn't belong to a team.
#2. Christopher Daniels was pitched to be part of The Brood
Edge, Christian, and Gangrel spent a portion of their wrestling careers portraying vampires when the trio debuted as The Brood back in 1998. The group was short-lived but led to success for Edge and Christian, who are now both WWE Hall of Famers.
Gangrel revealed in an interview with Chris Van Vliet following his WWE departure that Christian wasn't originally set to be part of the group, instead, it was indie sensation Christopher Daniels who the company was looking at for the final slot.
“They told me from day one it was to help bring Edge in and get him ready. They said he is our future and we are strapping a rocket to him. That was the deal. Edge brought in Christian. That was supposed to be the Chris Daniels spot.”
In the end, it was Christian who was given a place in the group and the trio had minimal success together for around a year.
#1. Former WWE Champion Big E was considered for a role in The Shield
Big E has found major success as a member of The New Day, which shows that the former WWE Champion was destined to be part of a stable. It appears that the company was aware of this since there were originally pitches for Big E to join The Shield whilst he was coming through developmental.
Kofi Kingston confirmed these rumors whilst speaking to Rick Ucchino of Sportskeeda.
""Big E will tell the story a lot better, but long-story-short, he was actually supposed to be in the Shield a long time ago, way way back when they were trying to pick people from FCW to come up. So Roman gets the call, Roman goes off, builds himself and does all these incredible things and incredible run with The Shield. Roman is Roman and also Big E has done some incredible things and [shown] some incredible growth . . . Now, everyone loves Big E, so there's a big journey there too," said Kofi Kingston.
It appears that the plan was for Big E to be added to the group to make it a foursome instead of a trio, but luckily these ideas never materialized as Big E was able to find immense success without The Shield.