10 Real-Life Wrestling Heels Who Turned Babyface
Living long enough to become the hero.
Corey Graves is the most noteworthy real-life wrestling heel.
The guy claimed he couldn't go "full Bobby Heenan" because Vince McMahon is in his ear all the time. He can't go full Bobby Heenan because he's not funny nor beloved. He also criticised the work of his colleague Mauro Ranallo on Twitter, badly affecting his mental health. Mauro's work isn't beyond criticism - the cultural references he crams into NXT TalkOver: Nigel And Beth are beyond parody at this point - but you're not wrong, Corey, you're just an a**hole.
Baron Corbin is a gotten-to hypocrite - the non-"negative" person is hardly effusive in his praise of AEW - and that he compared Dave Meltzer to a "cancer" was so misguided as to border on the reprehensible.
Jim Cornette is making several enemies these days. Vince McMahon remains the preeminent IRL wrestling heel by squandering multiple generations of incredible talent by instructing them to say a load of complete toss. Aleister Black is less a promo and more the lyrics to a Smashing Pumpkins song butchered by Bray Wyatt.
But there's hope for 'em yet, on the following evidence.
Except Baron Corbin.
10. Bruce Prichard
Was a heel because...
He aided and abetted every last one of Vince McMahon's worst impulses in his role as yes-man. Was loathed by countless WWE figures over the years, not least of which Stephanie McMahon, for his ahem perceived tendency to blindly support his captain, even in the face of an iceberg he, incidentally, somehow didn't turn into a gimmick throughout the worst of the otherwise great New Generation Era. Was considered a weasel by those same people for oozing his way beyond official channels and into Vince's ear. Work ethic was frequently questioned. Duplicitous even by wrestling standards.
Turned babyface by...
Being entertaining on Conrad Thompson's podcast, perversely and in earnest. His impressions were amusing, the minutiae he offered fascinating in spite and often because of the overpowering stench of bullsh*t. Did you know that Vince McMahon devised the Muhammad Hassan character because he just felt so bad about the perception of Arab-Americans, post 9/11?
Thing is, Prichard is turning heel once more, having returned to WWE and oversaw SmackDown's descent into dire, repetitive comedy.
Wellllllllllll, he's the new Big Show!