10 Shocking Times WWE Pulled The Plug On Mega Pushes

4. Raven

Lacey Evans
WWE.com

Scott Levy swears to this day that Vince McMahon was overheard saying "who the f*ck hired Raven?!" after spotting the former ECW and WCW star backstage in 2000, and it's perhaps why his surprising arrival was inserted into the commentary by Jim Ross during the brooding star's Unforgiven run-in.

'Good Ol JR' proffered shock, confusion and intrigue at the mere sight of him as he helped (!) Tazz (!!) to victory over Jerry Lawler (!!!), but within weeks the former Nest and Flock leader was reduced to midcard rank-and-file on a roster too hot for him to handle.

Few stars were wasted while the organisation was at its most prosperous, and whilst Raven was a boon for a flagging Hardcore division, the gimmick wasn't ever fleshed out as it had been during his tenures elsewhere.

By the time he departed WWE in 2003, it wasn't even visually recognisable. Denim shorts and black t-shirts were replaced with a black and white visage before he resorted to actual wrestling tights ahead of his release. New home TNA were only too happy to return the character to his roots when he made his surprising debut within days of a WWE release.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett