10 MORE Attempted WWE Repackages That Failed Miserably
3. Sgt. Slaughter: Iraqi Sympathiser
Though initially pushed as a heel, Sgt. Slaughter became a hugely marketable babyface in the 1980s. His patriotic drill sergeant gimmick was a monstrous success, making him not only an easy opponent for foreign heels like The Iron Sheik, but a huge fan favourite, with his peak popularity second only to Hulk Hogan's.
Sarge's WWE legacy was harmed by his decision to leave for the AWA in 1985, but he returned to Vince McMahon's company five years, with the company pulling a U-turn on the gimmick. The pro-USA military man of old was replaced by a crooked Iraqi sympathiser. With Iraq's invasion of Kuwait igniting the Gulf War and leading to US intervention, the idea was that Slaughter would become the biggest heel in the business by supporting a country his homeland were in conflict with. While the repackaging did succeed in making people hate Sarge, it wasn't the right kind of heat.
Slaughter had to wear a bulletproof vest everywhere he went, and faced multiple death threats. So strong was the backlash, in fact, that WWE were forced to move WrestleMania VIII (an event Sarge was scheduled to headline) from the 100,000-seater Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to the most LA Memorial Sports Arena. This had more to do with ticket sales that security though: the event drew just 16,158.