10 Greatest Things About WCW’s Final Year

7. Mean Gene Gives Zero F**ks

'Mean' Gene Okerlund made a name for himself as a no-nonsense interviewer with a ridiculous quick wit and an unmatched ability to think on his feet, but the dying days of WCW saw Gene's no-nonsense approach amped up to 11.

From watching him during that last year or two of WCW, it was clear that Okerlund was well aware that WCW was dying a death and that he was more than happy to say and do what he wanted. And for the watching audience, it was great!

Gene was clearly at the f**k it stage by that final year, and he wouldn't hold back in throwing shade a wrestlers' way. In particular, 'Mean' Gene seemed to reserve a special sense of disdain for Jeff Jarrett and the Mike Sanders-led Natural Born Thrillers stable.

Forever quick to throw around a "blow it out of you ass," Gene Okerlund had gone from firm, unfazed interviewer, to a savage who relished any opportunity to lay a verbal beatdown on the heels of the day. It was 'Mean' Gene Okerlund, just not quite as we'd come to know him over the previous two decades.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.