10 WWE Wrestlers Vince McMahon Didn’t Know How To Book
3. Luke Harper
The string of events leading to Luke Harper's WWE departure was so ridiculous they'd have sounded fake had they come from anyone but Vince McMahon.
The WWE Chairman was reportedly enraged when Harper (a native of Rochester, New York) couldn't fake a southern accent, with the current Mr. Brodie Lee claiming the boss saw him as a "backwoods hillbilly who spoke in a drawl." McMahon soured further on Harper after a poor dark match with EC3 that was intended as a trial run for Drake Maverick as EC3's manager, with the duo's failure decreed Luke's fault, leading to a planned feud with Sami Zayn being scrapped. Days later, Harper requested his release. WWE finally let him go in December 2019.
Harper was great as a Wyatt Family member, his broad big man skills elevating the Erick Rowan tag team to a level far above his cumbersome partner. Vince's problem was being unable to see him as anything beyond that stable. No amount of spoken eloquence or in-ring skill was going to change this, with McMahon's grudge so strong even Harper's biggest supporter, Arn Anderson, stopped speaking up for him for fear for the boss' vindictive response.