10 Biggest Heat Magnets In WWE History

For a cup of coffee in 2006, Mr. Kennedy was thought of as the future of WWE, with some bright sparks even considering that he might become the second coming of ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin. The two men had their similarities - a compelling charisma, a fast-paced, brawling style - but over and above his talents as a performer, Austin had something that Kennedy didn’t and that was timing.

At first Ken ‘Kennedy’ Anderson had the office behind him, which provided him with a fantastic first year in the company and a pretty hot spot on the upper midcard, one that was only going to get hotter. Scuttlebutt (like gossip being pushed to the moon) was that he’d been called Kennedy because that was Vince McMahon’s middle name.

All indications were that the ‘McMahon illegitimate son’ angle in summer 2007 was supposed to wind up naming him as the third McMahon kid and a kayfabe heir to the throne. It was a no-brainer: Mr. Kennedy was the next big thing.

And then a rash of bad luck and worse decisions cost him everything. He’d already lost out on the Money In The Bank briefcase he’d won at WrestleMania 23 when a supposedly serious injury caused him to drop the gimmick to Edge, only for the injury to be revealed as deep bruising rather than a tear requiring surgery.

Then, immediately after having been hand-picked to do the media rounds bigging-up the WWE’s wellness policy after the Benoit family tragedy, he was found to have been one of those ordering steroids in the infamous Signature Pharmacy scandal. Kennedy was suspended for thirty days, right on the cusp of being revealed as Vince’s long lost son, and the angle was written off as a comic bit with Hornswoggle taking the fall, just as he would with the Anonymous General Manager damp squib five years later.

Then there were rumours of a bad attitude behind the scenes. The heir apparent was getting bolshy, from all reports. Important people began to sour on him: that was twice so far in 2007 that potentially star-making angles for Mr. Kennedy had tanked on them, and now he was acting the brat backstage? A nasty, humiliating falling out with former best friend Bob Holly only made things worse.

It was a botched backdrop on Randy Orton that was the last straw. Orton flipped, and along with fellow WWE golden boy John Cena (who’d been injured after a dodgy hiptoss from Kennedy) went to management and refused to work with Kennedy any longer.

Over three years, the no-brainer became a non-starter. Kennedy was released in May 2009, just four days after returning from a dislocated shoulder, WWE having officially decided that he was a waste of their time.