10 Wrestlers Who Became Everything They HATED

7. Shane Douglas Becomes Second-Rate

Chris Jericho Kevin Nash
WWE.com

Being anywhere else sounded pretty darn good to Shane Douglas by early-1996.

The guy had been a real revolutionary after tossing down the NWA belt and ushering in the era of peak ECW in the summer of '94. Approx 18 months later, Shane had been rethought as walking cartoon Dean Douglas in the WWF, and he was having the worst time both in front of cameras and backstage in locker rooms.

Being brutally honest, the gimmick was a poor fit for him from the off, but he had bigger problems. Shane wasn't making any money, and he didn't get along with some on the roster (The Kliq, mainly) either. In a heartbeat, Douglas went from industry lightning rod to working a crappy gimmick for payoffs poorer than some on the indy circuit, and he couldn't take it anymore.

Everything came to a head when allegations surfaced that Dean was faking injuries to get out of wrestling. He's vehemently denied that over the years, and just thinks the whole WWF run was a botched experiment. Becoming a second-rate midcarder who was disliked backstage didn't sound fun to Douglas after gripping industry critics by the balls with the NWA > ECW moment.

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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.