8. Sting's Remarkable Image Change Reignites His Career
During his recent spoken word tour of the UK, Steve 'Sting' Borden told how Scott Hall helped him develop a new character in 1996. Since bursting onto the scene in the 1980's, Sting had favoured bleach-blonde hair and garish colours. In '96, he wanted to change for a feud against the New World Order. Something dramatic was needed, a wild transformation followed. In 1995 and 1996, Sting started to grow out his hair and dyed it black. Even so, fans could not have predicted what the man had in store for them next. Influenced by Brandon Lee's performance in 'The Crow', Sting switched up his look and became a darker character altogether. Fans greeted the switch favourably, and it was entirely out of left field. All of a sudden, Sting was one of the most mysterious characters in all of wrestling. Had it not been for the image change in October, 1996, who knows where his career would have headed. This was a radical decision, and a little bit of a calculated risk for the man. There's a chance fans could have shunned the new look, but it would wind up being more popular than the 'Surfer' style he had donned for years.
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.
