Jeff Hardy Wants To Become WWE's New Bray Wyatt With "Really Silly" Gimmick
In which Jeff Hardy suggests filling WWE's Fiend-shaped void with Willow, a painter gimmick, & more.
WWE veteran Jeff Hardy has some wild ideas for his televised character's future.
Speaking with Metro's Alistair McGeorge, the SmackDown star has revealed that while he is yet to pitch these plans to his employers, he has envisioned reviving his old Willow character in a manner similar to Windham Rotunda's balancing act between Bray Wyatt and The Fiend.
Jeff at least plans on speaking to WWE brass about Willow, the gimmick he brought to life in TNA in 2013:-
"I think there’s something special about Willow. I’ve written down some ideas, I don’t know if they really make sense. I’ve yet to pitch any to anybody, creatively, in WWE. So I just need to go in and do that, not hesitate. They might shut it down, but it might be cool. I can’t help but think how cool it was when I first witnessed The Fiend, and the light shutting down. It was so cool to me – that’s kinda my thing too, I was like, 'Man, this is so cool!' Now he’s not here anymore, I think there’s something really cool Willow could do similar to that."
Wyatt was released from WWE on 31 July 2021. Though his 90-day non-compete clause has now expired, it looks like making movies will occupy his time for the foreseeable future.
Hardy continued, outlining a "really silly painter" character seemingly spired by American television host, artist, and serotonin merchant Bob Ross:-
"It wouldn’t be exactly like that, but I’ve even had ideas like a Jeff Ross character – like I was a painter, a really silly painter Jeffery Ross, and then Willow would be my Fiend."
He concedes, however, that this may be too close to what Rotunda was doing with the Firefly Fun House concept:-
"But then that’s too much like the Fun House. But that’s what’s cool about pro wrestling – anything’s possible and anything can make sense if it’s thought out correctly and really believed in."
Hardy has spoken on potentially bringing Willow to WWE several times recently, most notably in October, confirming a new mask was in production for the character.
This Sunday's Survivor Series 2021 pay-per-view will see Hardy form part of Team SmackDown in the traditional men's five-on-five elimination match.