10 Wrestling Storylines That Wasted Incredible Premises

6. Vince McMahon's Illegitimate Son

HHH Adam Cole Shayna Baszler
WWE.com

The premise:

Can you imagine a good, impeccably built pro wrestler with the surname McMahon? One Vince McMahon might make some effort towards wishing a happy birthday on Twitter?

A dominant über heel, the embodiment of nepotism, rampaging through WWE like he was going to own the place? Who, through his bloodline, was given the grandest treatment ever afforded a WWE superstar in order to put over the favouritism angle? Like, just an absolutely f*cking insane amount of pyro, majestic entrance music, gear made entirely of gold? A preposterously committed mega-push?

That's what was made possible through the ingenious, quintessentially WWE idea to have Vince McMahon unknowingly sire an illegitimate son. Obviously, this was Mr. Kennedy's role before he sh*t-disturbed himself out of a job, but there was so much storytelling potential to explore: the mega push informed by favouritism, with McMahon Montrealing every match that looked to be going awry, a very suspicious #30 Royal Rumble entry, tensions with fellow prince Shane...

The waste:

Hornswoggle, 'cause they'd given up completely. A months-long mystery reduced to a punchline because they couldn't be a*sed to pay it off.

Sensational.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!