10 Wrestlers Who Turned Their Backs On Former Gimmicks

5. The Fiend

Sami Zayn El Generico
WWE

The Firefly Funhouse wasn't just a gimmick change for a moribund character in need of fresh direction: it was a means for Bray Wyatt to very publicly cremate the past.

Or at least, sever it in half, via an act both destructive and symbolic of 'The Fiend's' new dissociativity. After weeks of teasers - which didn't exactly fill anyone with confidence this'd be the big reboot Bray so desperately needed - the first episode of the Funhouse aired in April 2019. A trim Wyatt - both in figure and facial hair - emanated from the set of a kids' TV show like a beardy Mr. Rogers, introducing viewers to his sock-puppet friends, Mercy the Buzzard and Abby the Witch.

He then admitted that he used to be a "bad man", but that he kept a reminder so he'd never turn into that "pathetic slob again": a lifesize cutout of his Eater of Worlds persona.

The meaning behind him then taking a chainsaw to the standee wasn't exactly subtle. With that, Wyatt achieved the dual purpose of visually splitting his character in two, and consigning the gibberish of the past to the garbage heap.

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Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.