10 Wrestling Gimmicks That Failed Before They Started

3. Pirate Paul Burchill

Does this look like an attempt to cash in on Johnny Depp's Captain Jack Sparrow to anyone? Savvy, huh? It was a pretty see-through attempt, really. Look, pirates work great on screen and within their own world, but in the confines of the WWE, where using a hook hand or musket as a weapon is generally considered just a little too ridiculous, pirates don't really have a place. Debuting on the main roster in 2005, Burchill was originally part of a tag team with William Regal and, importantly, not a pirate. However, after the pair went their separate ways, Burchill stated that his family heritage could be traced back to Blackbeard, and took on the pirate persona in one of the most ill-fated gimmick changes in WWE history. Lacking the swagger and acting ability of Johnny Depp or even some other wrestlers better suited to such an outlandish persona, Burchill did get some favourable crowd response after the gimmick's debut in March 2006, at least initially. This was probably thanks to him swinging down to the floor on a rope. Unfortunately, the gimmick soon started to wear, and he was pretty much yanked from T.V. Vince McMahon reportedly didn't get the character, and felt he should actually believe he was a pirate. Either way, it didn't matter - the pirate was gone from TV within months, and appeared just once in character in all of 2007, before being repackaged in 2008 as a heel.