Why WWE has failed to create megastars
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of Sportskeeda.
One of the biggest gripes that fans have with WWE today is the company's inability to create new stars. The biggest wrestling promotion in the world has always been driven by star-power. From Superstars of yesteryear like Bruno Samartino to modern-day greats like John Cena, the company has been home to almost every major Superstar in the business.
Regardless of what your opinion about John Cena might be, he was truly the last megastar in WWE. As the sixteen-time World Champion is now turning heads in Hollywood, we can't help but wonder if the company will ever build another star of Cena's caliber. The answer, at the moment, is a resounding no.
The closest WWE has come to creating the next megastar is Roman Reigns, but we all know the former Universal Champion's ascent to the top hasn't been without its problems. While the same can be said about Cena, given his notoriety for being the most polarizing figure in the business, the Boston-native's tenure as the top guy will be difficult to replicate, as will the imprint he left on the professional wrestling business.
While one can blame the company and WWE Creative until the crows come home, some wrestling fans also share a portion of the blame. Let's turn back the clock to the beginning of 2019, when Kofi Kingston, Seth Rollins, and Becky Lynch emerged as the biggest names in WWE.
The trio won their respective matches at WrestleMania and it seemed like that they were going to be WWE's top Superstars for the foreseeable future. Only months after his historic win at WrestleMania, Kingston lost his WWE Championship to Brock Lesnar and has currently returned to the Tag Team Division alongside Big E. Shortly after Kingston was squashed by Brock Lesnar, Rollins lost the Universal Championship to 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt.
The only one who managed to hold her fortress has been Becky Lynch because the fanbase has backed her firmly throughout this period. Lynch has managed to deliver at every given opportunity and is arguably the most-talked-about Superstar in the business today, but nothing lasts forever and she too may one day experience fans turning on her.
This is not to say either Rollins or Kingston failed to deliver. The fans simply grew weary of seeing them as champions and pushed for change. In Kingston's case, it was a lack of credible opponents and his championship matches not meeting fan expectations. In Rollins' case, it was a myriad of factors from his social media outbursts, to his on-screen character's trajectory, to the disastrous Hell in a Cell finish. Each of these led to fans souring on him as a top babyface champion.
In 2019, WWE tried creating three mega babyface Superstars with only one managing to hold onto their respective title. As much as some argue that WWE doesn't give fans what they want, look no further than this year, which has proven that theory erroneous.
With competition hovering, WWE has to cater to fan expectations. Crowning the popular Bray Wyatt as the new Universal Championship is the latest example of that. Wyatt as champion presents its own set of problems, but the bold decision to put the title on him shows that the company did indeed give fans what they wanted, but what fans want today, they may not want tomorrow. Such was the case for many with Rollins and Kingston.
The problem here is that some modern wrestling fans' expectations are difficult (if not impossible) to cater to. WWE often finds itself in an unwinnable situation, time and time again. Many WWE fans will turn on anyone they perceive to be a corporate player, or someone who takes pride in working for the company.
Just imagine people turning on The Rock/Stone Cold during the Attitude Era because they received a huge push. That never happened, but if The Rock/Stone Cold were in their prime today, there would have likely been discussion/debates around how the company was pushing the duo at the expense of other talents.
Much of today's wrestling audience has an incredibly short attention span. The advent of social media has played a big role in that. At this point, it is impossible to imagine a single Superstar being the face of WWE. While there will be Superstars holding the mantle for a certain period, John Cena will likely go down as the last Superstar to have single-handedly carried the company on his/her back for an extended period of time.
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