NWO Twenty Years Later: Where Are They Now?

Without Scott Hall, there would be no nWo. The wrestling industry would have traveled down an entirely different path, and perhaps the Monday Night Wars would never have revived the industry. More importantly, I wouldn't be slaving over career retrospectives of three dozen retired ex-pros. (I still have Tylene Buck to look forward to).

Hall's story is more or less identical to Nash's - there's no need to go over a piece of wrestling folklore we're all intimately acquainted with. However, despite starting from the same base, they diverged in quite different directions. Whereas Nash ascended to the summit, Hall plummeted to the the very depths.

Not professionally - far from it. Had Hall been able to contend with his personal demons throughout his WCW career, he would equally have been in line for top billing. As it was, his position eventually became untenable - even more so when he allegedly engaged in a relationship with TNT president Brad Siegel's niece. He was fired from the company in 2000.

Alongside Nash and Hogan, Hall reformed the nWo in WWF in 2002, but his return to the company was short-lived. Once one of the biggest names in the business, Hall began touring a number of low-key indie promotions (TNA, for example), as his addiction issues spiraled out of control.

By 2013, Hall seemed like a lost cause. He could barely walk, had been repeatedly hospitalised, and was still desperately struggling with substance abuse. It was at his lowest point that DDP reached out to him.

DDP had already been credited with saving the life of Jake Roberts, bringing 'the Snake' back from the brink of total destruction. Working one miracle was something, but two? Many people were rightly skeptical about just how far Page's powers of positivity could help 'the Bad Guy'.

Just over a year later, Hall was a reformed man, to the extent that he was inducted into WWE's Hall of Fame - 12 months ago, the company wouldn't have went near him with a ten-foot toothpick. Since, he was worked regularly with the company (he even turned up at WrestleMania 31), and though there have been slips along the way, he appears to be in his best frame of mind for decades.

One of the sharpest brains in the business, Hall is always ready to offer advice to the next generation of talent (including his son, Cody), and relishes any opportunity he gets to work at NXT's Performance Centre.