8 WWE Wrestlers Vince McMahon Refused To Turn Heel
That's the bottom line 'cos VKM says so.
At its best, the wrestling business is driven just as much by character work as it is by in-ring ability. For all the flips and flops in the world, they can be rendered null and void if there's no story nor emotion to what we're seeing play out between the ropes.
One key fact to creating emotion in the wrestling business, of course, is establishing the lines of good and evil, of babyface and heel, and at times veering into shades of grey with certain characters when called for. For so many performers over the decades, they've often bounced from one side of the spectrum to the other - from the all-smiling, baby-kissing, granny-hugging good guy or gal, to the snarling, cheating, audience berating bad guy or gal.
In the realms of WWE, the ultimate call on any of these characters changes falls upon the familiar figure of Vincent Kennedy McMahon. While the likes of Big Show, Undertaker, Kane, and Kurt Angle have changed their stance more times than any of us can remember, there are certain stars who McMahon has outright refused to have turn to the dark side.
Whether it was McMahon refusing a wrestler's own personal request to turn heel, refusing to embrace a negative audience response to a talent, or even an ever-familiar late-minute "plans change, pal", here are eight talents the Chairman refused to turn heel...
8. Ricky Steamboat
If ever there was the very definition of a stereotypical great babyface, it's Ricky Steamboat.
The Dragon ticked every box possible for what made a great babyface during the time he was active in the business. A good looking, physically impressive, clean cut fella who was fantastic to watch in the ring, Steamboat had it all - even more-so when you could position him up against brilliant heels acts such as Ric Flair, Randy Savage, Rick Rude, Jake Roberts, and even an up-and-coming 'Stunning' Steve Austin.
Upon returning to the World Wrestling Federation in 1991, Steamboat's Dragon nickname was embraced in a slightly bizarre way by WWF decision makers. This former Intercontinental Champion - who just two years prior had exchanged the NWA World Heavyweight Title with Ric Flair in a trilogy of iconic contests - was now being referred to solely by the name Dragon.
No Ricky Steamboat, no Ricky 'The Dragon' Steamboat. Just Dragon - complete with a dragon outfit, breathing fire as he goes.
Unhappy with this gimmick, Steamboat approached Vince McMahon's second-in-command, Pat Patterson, with an idea to turn himself heel. The Dragon wanted to start working under a mask, laying out babyfaces in a brutal fashion, leading to a 'whodunit' reveal of ΓΌber good guy Ricky Steamboat being the man beneath the hood.
Patterson would laugh off this idea, proclaiming that nobody would ever believe that Steamboat could be a heel.