10 Hyped WWE Debuts That Were CANCELLED

In the wake of Hulkamania running wild worldwide, Vince McMahon had his eyes on a number of potential replacements for when Hogan moved on to his... acting career...

While The Ultimate Warrior wound up being the first eventual flop to receive the big push, he wasn't actually the original pick. Tom Magee, a powerlifting powerhouse from Winnipeg, Manitoba, seemingly ticked every box McMahon required of a WWF leading man at the time. Tall, jacked beyond belief and agile, the super-athletic Magee impressed. With his 8 x 10.

In WWF, Magee worked several house shows and dark matches, including the now legendary October 1986 showdown with Bret Hart. While the match impressed many, the taping of it was not released to the public until more recent years. The bout was dismissed as a carry job on Hart's part soon after it happened.

Ultimately, Magee simply lacked the necessary charisma and showmanship to front a conglomerate like the WWF, particularly at the height of the hyperactive Cartoon Era. Despite his near superhuman all-round athleticism, the big man struggled to apply it effectively to the ring unless he had a seasoned veteran holding his hand. Despite years of rumblings and rumors, Magee never made it all the way in the WWF and has since become an odd sort of urban legend in the promotion's long history.