10 Times WWE Got Babyfaces Wrong

6. Randy Orton

Randy Orton Big Gold
WWE.com

Some wrestlers are just born to play heel.

Randy Orton is one of them, and yet WWE experimented with a babyface turn shortly after his first World Title win at SummerSlam 2004. Triple H, Ric Flair and Batista pasted their former stablemate for daring to steal the spotlight, and Randy embarked on a wobbly journey into face territory that lasted less than a year.

The main issue is that Orton was coming into his own as an apprentice heel borrowing bits from both Trips and Flair before he was unceremoniously dumped from Evolution. Cast out into the big, bad world, Randy's babyface fire fizzled out quickly when fans realised that he didn't have many redeeming qualities.

Orton also never looked happy with his new role and clearly couldn't wait to make his return to the dark side ASAP. He'd get his wish in 2005 by kicking off a feud with The Undertaker and settling back into a heelish groove.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.