What Did WWE's Roster REALLY Think When The Undertaker Debuted?
Shawn Michaels opens up on how The Undertaker was viewed by his new WWE peers.
The Undertaker's legacy stretches back 30 long years. His longevity is legendary, but his peers were doubtful that it'd last more than a year or so when the 'Deadman' first crashed onto the WWF scene at Survivor Series 1990.
Shawn Michaels told CBS Sports (scroll down a bit for his interview) that most figured the gimmick would be "very cool but short-lived". After all, the dude was playing an undead zombie, and he didn't sell a lick for anyone's moves.
The WWF roster weren't sure what to do with 'Taker, because nobody could figure out how they'd go about getting a good match out of him. This isn't something Shawn had to worry about - he was a "lower midcard tag team guy" at the time, but he heard others higher up the food chain declare that Vince McMahon's latest creation would be a "limited character".
Nobody could've predicted that 'Taker would become the icon he is today. Michaels still struggles to believe that Mark Calaway turned such a one-note gimmick into something that lasted for 30 epic years, especially because the original vision McMahon had was so "simplistic".