Santino Marella had one of the most memorable debuts in WWE history when he was plucked from the crowd to face Umaga for the Intercontinental Championship. He was instantly recognizable with his numerous tattoos and he already had a title before anyone knew how to pronounce his name. It seemed like a dream come true, but it ended up being a curse disguised as a blessing. Marella is a talented worker, but he was forced to portray someone who had never been in the ring before. It made his matches hard to watch and took credibility away from his title reign. He eventually found some success as a comedy character in both the heel and babyface roles, but he could have accomplished so much more had he been brought up the traditional way. Santino now has a movie under his belt and a history of being more entertaining than he had any right to be, so hopefully he can find some success in Hollywood if he finds the right people to market him as a character actor.
I have been a writer for Bleacher Report for several years, and am now happy to also be a writer at What Culture! I do my best to contribute anywhere I can in a positive way, and that includes in my writing. Some people call me The Doctor, but Chris is fine.
