2. Hogan vs Zeus - 1989
The summer of 1989 was a hot one for wrestling; top star Hulk Hogan was riding a wave of momentum thanks to a fantastic feud with Randy Savage, culminating at WrestleMania V. An impending continuation of their rivalry was expected, or perhaps a new marquee match with another of the company's top heels at SummerSlam. Instead, fans were treated to Hogan vs Zeus. Zeus was a character from No Holds Barred, a WWF-financed movie released in June which saw Hogan star as Rip Thomas, a thinly-veiled fictional version of himself. Disgruntled at being billed underneath Hogan (and angry at losing the movie's climactic bout), Zeus showed up in the WWF to challenge him to a match. This would have been fine if Zeus had debuted in the form of Tom Lister (the actor who played him in No Holds Barred), but he actually appeared as his fictional self. The rivalry made no sense in kayfabe terms, with Hogan, a real man, facing off against a movie character. To make matters worse, Lister had very little professional wrestling experience of his own. The pair squared off in a tag match alongside respective partners Brutus Beefcake and Randy Savage, rendering the whole PPV a promotional tool for an already-released film. Needless to say, Hogan and Beefcake won.