In professional wrestling, no one stays popular forever. Hulk Hogan was the biggest thing going for years, until fans became tired of his act in 1996. Because of this, he was basically forced to turn heel to remain relevant. At one point, John Cena was over with a majority of the crowd. Those days are long gone. Even The Undertaker has had his share of lame feuds over the years that bored the audience to tears. But for the most part, fans didn't want to see those guys simply go away, they wanted to see something new from their one time favorites. They wanted them to evolve. Other wrestlers have not been so lucky. Many have been stuck in one-note gimmicks that had a built in shelf life. Once that time is up, it can result in apathy or downright hostility from the crowds. When that happens, you're usually as good as gone. Sometimes, though, talents who garner lackluster reactions still remain employed, and are given prime roles on TV far beyond the point of it making any sense. From former top stars, to popular mid-card acts, here are eight wrestlers who simply wore out their welcome with the fans.
8. Scotty 2 Hotty
Mr. Hotty actually goes back a long way in the WWF. While he was a junior in high school, he was used as a jobber in the company. He showed up sporadically for the next six years until he became a full-time wrestler in 1997. He was then paired with Brian Christopher, who was stuck under the shadow of his father Jerry Lawler. The two became Too Much, but were too boring to get over. When they switched to a lame hip-hop act, things started to click. They were so goofy, and so into their act that the fans couldn't help but cheer for them. They were turned face and Rikishi joined their side which established them as a popular mid-card act for a couple of years. Unfortunately for the group, Rikishi was split off in hopes of becoming a singles star, and Christopher was fired for attempting to carry drugs into Canada. Hotty was on his own. He formed a tag team with Albert, which was a lame attempt to recreate Too Cool. If only WWE would have learned their lesson the first time that Albert (later Tensai) was not good at playing a dancing fool. Anyway, after Rikishi's singles run failed, he was paired back together with Hotty to play off their earlier success. It just wasn't the same. Fans had seen the duo dance hundreds of times before. It wasn't that cool anymore. Rikishi was released from the company, and Hotty became a singles act. For the next few years, he was mainly relegated to jobber duty. Sure, he'd bust out the worm now and then, but the gimmick just felt tiring. Fans weren't popping for his entrance anymore. As a group, the act was fun. As a one-man show, it was sad. Portraying an ironic hip-hop wrestling can only work for so long. Eight years far exceeded that time frame.