10 Wrestling Gimmicks That Were NOTHING Like The Wrestlers Who Portrayed Them
9. Goldust
During the celebrated 'Wrestling With Shadows' documentary, Bret Hart noted how little Dustin Runnels was like Goldust character he'd magnificently portrayed since signing for the company in 1995. He wasn't wrong - Runnels agreed to the gimmick without having a f*cking clue what Vince McMahon was even pitching.
A famous phone call between the two allegedly resulted in Runnels giving the golden gimmick a go after being too scared to ask what 'androgynous' meant.
As the son of a son of a plumber, Dustin had perfected a token cowboy gimmick in the vast shadow of his famous father Dusty Rhodes, so the 'Bizarre One' was quite the multi-layered departure. It eventually became his calling card.
Goldust was a magnificent gimmick portrayed magnificently, even through the choppiest waters of an overtly experimental Attitude Era. Though the performer underneath the paint suffered multiple hardships between over two decades in and out of the gimmick, his personal and professional renaissance over the past five years has resulted in a second life for Goldust as a wizened old head on a youthful roster. Kayfabe and real-life Dustin have never been so simpatico.