7 Wrestlers WCW Gave Up On

WCW were so confident that Alex Wright's repackaging as Europunk heel Berlyn was going to be a roaring hit that they tied the German down to a frankly preposterous $375,000 per annum contract at the turn of 1999. Keep in mind Wright had previously portrayed a dancing wunderkind of zero consequence as context for that figure's excess.

It goes without saying that with such financial backing, WCW were going to go all out to ensure Berlyn unified fan opinion. A debut promo for the ages ensured the Teutonic terror did precisely that - but not at all how the company envisaged.

Gene Okerlund squirmed in his shoes as Berlyn delivered one answer after another in German, each line translated by interpreter Uta Ludendorff, a woman with all the acting skills of David Hasselhoff. The awful, awkward segment met the derision of fans, and when WCW further noticed their new character bore inadvertent resemblance to the perpetrators of the recent Columbine high school massacre, Berlyn was shelved.

He later returned in September, but the company was clearly no longer interested. His first major programme was a shambles; original opponent Buff Bagwell refused to lose, and replacement Jim Duggan refused to sell. WCW eventually decided that bodyguard The Wall (yes, hilarious) had more upside than the Rivethead rotter, and that meant it was (iron) curtains for Berlyn.