10 WWE Gimmicks That Pushed The PG Era To Its Limits

4. Jack Swagger & Zeb Colter (Racist Xenophobes)

Almost like he was predicting future US President Donald Trump's policies, the out-of-touch character of Zeb Colter bemoaned immigration when he debuted in 2013. Specifically, Colter took issue with (what he deemed) illegal immigrants coming over the United States border, and he regularly lectured fans on keeping their country pure.

That irked right-wing political commentator Glenn Beck, who was furious at seeing Tea Partiers miscast in an industry he clearly didn't have much time for anyway. His negative coverage of the story was so strong it later forced WWE to release a kayfabe-shattering video justifying Colter's character.

The truth is that old Zeb was so good at playing the zealot that his wordy promos and talk of real-world issues stood out from usual wrestling storylines. Further, it was rather weird to see WWE try their hand at such a political storyline and fit it snugly into a PG environment.

It wasn't long before WWE changed direction, softened Colter from borderline racist to patriotic old man and eventually turned both he and Swagger babyface. Their characterisation had hoped to stir feelings in politically active fans; a strange tactic when aimed at kids.