10 Most METAL Wrestlers Of All Time
5. Kevin Sullivan
Pay enough attention to the occult and you are inevitably going to get yourself some comparisons and connections to the most occult of music. Pro wrestling and the occult? If you don't immediately think of Kevin Sullivan, you need to educate yourself.
Despite being one of the most diminutive guys in wrestling, The Taskmaster managed to create a character the developed into one of the most hated heels in the business. That character was directly influenced by bands like Metallica and Black Sabbath, big-time metal bands who didn't just flirt with the occult, they flat out embraced it. Sullivan followed their lead, bringing black magic and the sinister mystery of the dark side into his gimmick. Did it work? You damn right it did.
Sullivan's portrayal of his character didn't go unnoticed in the metal world and a host of bands in Florida started to doff their caps in the direction of The Prince of Darkness. Brandon-based thrashers Nasty Savage even thanked Sullivan in the liner notes to one album, with a couple of Sullivan's stablemates providing backing vocals for a few songs.
Kevin Sullivan became a major wrestling heel by tapping into a subculture that was gradually gaining steam as a dangerous force in American life. Metal was the driving force behind what became known as the Satanic Panic, and Sullivan understood how impactful that could be in pro wrestling. The rest is history.