10 Most Cringeworthy Political Angles In WWE History
2. Sgt. Slaughter Turns On America
Sgt. Slaughter was the ultimate pro-American babyface. A huge, bruising power wrestler, Sarge’s military persona was immensely popular back in the day, and his GI Joe crossover saw his popularity transcend wrestling and merge into mainstream culture. Slaughter was so popular that he was genuinely rivalling Hulk Hogan for WWE’s top spot at one point, but he threw it all away
Sarge turned his back on America. He became repulsed by his countrymen, who, in his eyes, had grown soft and weak through the Cold War. Slaughter would cut increasingly scathing promos on his homeland while lauding Saddam Hussein, and started wearing Arab headdresses to the ring. In short, Slaughter pulled every cheap tactic in the book, and after aligning with General Adnan (a kayfabe Iraqi military general), Slaughter was the most hated man in wrestling.
He reportedly received multiple death threats throughout the turncoat run, and it’s reported that he had to wear a bulletproof vest and travel alone to ensure his public safety. There’s no doubt that turning on America got Sarge over as a heel, but things went way too far.
When a wrestler receives legitimate death threats for playing a TV character, something’s very wrong. Sarge eventually turned face again when the heat levels grew too dangerous, but his career was never the same, and he soon transitioned to a non-wrestling role.