10 WWE Stars Who Are Horrendously Miscast

6. Candice LeRae

Matt Riddle
NXT

Is playing:

A heel, which is helpfully denoted by her wearing black lipstick - a potent visual metaphor for an ailing, once-proud creative regime. She is playing a heel because her husband is, which also doesn't count as character development, and yes, while she would support her husband in real life, this isn't real life. It is quite the opposite. She might like working alongside Johnny Gargano, but since she dutifully aligns with him whenever he goes through another Hawthorne Heights phase, for the viewer, it's as if she can only exist in his orbit. This is a pity, because...

Should be playing:

While "just turn her at the same time as her husband" potentially undermines that point, just turn her at the same time as her husband. LeRae is an effervescent, über-gutsy working babyface, and the depth to her rare and authentic skill hasn't been remotely explored. She also has a tremendously relatable girl-next-door appeal that renders her patchy, man-dependent feeling goth might delete later arc a travesty, and the sad thing is that she never really had that awesome long-term babyface run. She endured nothing that would warrant such a dramatic transformation, and that's why it feels like she's just wearing black lipstick.

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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!