15 Times WWE Stars Made Cameos BEFORE They Were Famous
1. CM Punk
CM Punk talks a good game about being the "voice of the voiceless" and all that, but he's ultimately just a cog in the WWE machine. That sounds harsh, and it isn't meant as a dig at the guy, but it's true. He's there to make money like everybody else, bold brags about being a rebel or not. Punk even admitted that during one of his very first promos back in the promotion after rejoining in 2023.
20 years beforehand, he'd been marking out for leading man Brock Lesnar on an episode of SmackDown in 2003. The still-unknown Punk was one of several extras posing as fans who greeted the then-WWE Champion as he arrived for that night's show and begged to get Brock's autograph. Hey, maybe Punk immediately hopped onto eBay and punted that signature for a tidy profit.
This is the lesser-known of CM's cameos. Later, he played one of the gangsters for John Cena’s entrance at WrestleMania 22 in 2006, and that's also a lot of fun. Incredibly, that role was the closest Punk would get to the main event of 'Mania until he headlined opposite Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins in 2025.
Sometimes, wrestling makes even the best of all time play the waiting game.
Punk has made a career out of appearing aloof and like he doesn't care for star power or anyone's hype, so it's pretty funny to look back on this 2003 moment to see him giddily doing everything in his power to get a hand on Lesnar's shoulder before asking for his signature.
What other WWE stars made quick cameos before they were famous? For more wrestling, check out 10 Times Wrestlers Blatantly Lied To Your Face and 15 WWE Gimmick Changes That IMMEDIATELY Backfired!