10 Secrets Nobody Has Told You About WCW

2. The Pay-Per-View That Never Was

Stunning Steve Austin Stone Cold Steve Austin
WWE

While WCW had given itself a fresh start at several points during its final few years - including stripping every champion of their respective title in April 2000 - there was one fresh start that never had the chance to come to fruition.

Prior to the company being purchased by the WWF, Eric Bischoff was very much in the driving seat to lead a buyout of WCW. So much so, Eazy E began to map out a PPV called The Big Bang which would've served as a hard relaunch and rebranding of World Championship Wrestling.

The Big Bang was even advertised in the second-to-last issue of WCW Magazine, and Bischoff has since detailed in a WWE.com interview the tentative plans for his new WCW.

After taking a brief hiatus, WCW would've returned on 6 May 2001 with The Big Bang. That PPV would usher in a revitalised WCW, with ECW favourite Joey Styles and the fired-from-WWF Jerry Lawler earmarked to lead the commentary booth, heavy hitters such as Goldberg, Hulk Hogan, Sting, and DDP all pencilled in as headline talent, and Bischoff and his Fusient backers even hopeful of running crossover shows with WWF.

Upon Turner Broadcasting CEO Jamie Kellner deciding that Turner was to move in a direction away from pro wrestling, that left Bischoff and Fusient with the unviable option of purchasing a WCW that had zero television commitment... which in turn left the deal - and the Big Bang relaunch - dead in the water, as Vince McMahon instead swooped in.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.