10 Gimmicks WWE Cancelled For Being TOO SUCCESSFUL
7. ‘Jilted Lover’ Matt Hardy
Capitalising on real-life drama is a wrasslin' tradition, but few feuds were as gritty or real as Matt Hardy vs. Edge/Lita in 2005. Matt, jilted by the breakdown of his relationship with Lita and his friend Edge swooping in, was vocal enough to raise WWE's ire.
They released him in April, but a swell of fan support and sympathy forced their hand - Matt was back on TV by July, and the promotion elected to turn this love triangle into the summer's hottest angle. Hardy was the clear babyface, and some reckoned this genuine pain would be his tickets to main events.
It wasn't.
The 'wronged lover' side of Matt's character was abandoned once WWE tired of the rivalry. After ultimately losing to Edge, Hardy was moved sideways to SmackDown and eventually reformed his tag-team with brother Jeff. It was like nothing had happened - the E seemingly didn't see Matt as anything but a midcarder, and no amount of sympathy was going to change that.