10 Hyped WWE Debuts That Were Total Misdirections

7. The Undertaker

emma lina
WWE

Beginning in January 2011, WWE unleashed a string of gradually-more-revealing mini-movies that featured a man in black slowly making his way through a rain-soaked path to a creepy deserted house.

As each video concluded, the numbers '2 21 11' appeared, implying all payoffs to the mystery would come on February 21st's Monday Night Raw, which conveniently fell the night after the 'Elimination Chamber' pay-per-view and commenced WWE's final steer to WrestleMania.

With each weekly tease, interest would increase on just who the videos were for, with common sense pointing to The Undertaker but more speculative enjoyment garnered from outlandish predictions of Sting or Shawn Michaels.

When WWE played their hand on the night itself, it was indeed The Undertaker making his return from a 2010 'Buried Alive' defeat.

However, despite thrilling the live Raw crowd with 'The Deadman's climactic return, WWE used the segment to sensationally deliver another shock, as Triple H's music would interrupt the segment before Undertaker had even spoken.

Molten at the two huge surprises, the crowd were electric as the WWE titans stared at each other, then at the looming WrestleMania sign, booking one of the biggest matches on the card without needing to say a word.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett