3. Waylon Mercy/Bray Wyatt
Bray Wyatt's gimmick stands out in today's WWE among the number of ballroom dancers, dancing yahoos and men who believe the sock on their hand is self-aware. But imagine how much more Wyatt's gimmick stood out in 1995 when it belonged to Waylon Mercy. When you look at both men, there's no doubt where Wyatt took his inspiration from. For starters, just look at the outfit. We got some nice white pants along with a Hawaiin shirt on top. It's not exactly something you see everyday, especially in wrestling. Both came from the South, and they each had ominous vignettes that preceded their debut. Unlike some of the others on this list, copying was a good thing here. Mercy was way ahead of his time, and the gimmick never realized its full potential, as he lasted less than a year in the WWF before leaving due to injuries. Luckily, the act was brought back 17 years later, but this time in the hands of the former Husky Harris. Bray Wyatt took the foundation of Mercy's gimmick, and then made it his own. Instead of being inspired by Robert DeNiro's character in
Cape Fear like Mercy
, he became an evil cult leader. So far, he's already received a bigger push than Mercy ever did, and looks primed for a successful run. While there are some differences between the character, it's pretty safe to say that without Waylon Mercy there would be no Bray Wyatt "you know what I mean?"