5. Brian Pillman
After sending away the then-current WCW World Heavyweight Champion while he still had the right to carry the title belt, one would imagine those running the organization would put a little more thought into things before releasing anyone else. As the case of Brian Pillman would reveal: Nope. (We told you we'd get back to this.) Once a member of The Hollywood Blonds as "Flyin'" Brian, Pillman began developing a "Loose Cannon" character. His unpredictable behavior blurred the lines of what was real and what wasn't, leading to several cutting moments such as grabbing the collar of Bobby "The Brain" Heenan (who suffered from a history of neck problems) on commentary at ringside, leading to the blurting of an expletive on-air (Heenan said he didn't know at the time that it was Pillman grabbing him, believing it to be a fan). As legend has it, Pillman wanted out of his contract with WCW, and so concocted an angle in which he would be "fired" from the company so as to develop his character further. To boost the credibility of the angle, he wanted WCW head Eric Bischoff to fax him his termination papers, making it appear all the more legitimate. Bischoff complied, and after a brief stopover in Extreme Championship Wrestling, "The Loose Cannon" would sign with Vince at a rather memorable press conference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mJ-6oIUiPQ Incidentally, he would live up to "The Loose Cannon" moniker in more ways than one, as a home invasion by former tag team partner "Stone Cold" Steve Austin led to Pillman drawing a 9mm pistol with which he intended to protect his family and himself.