WWE: 10 Times Real Life Political Troubles Fuelled Top Heels
2. Muhammad Hassan
9/11 brought back a lot of old feelingsthe fear we had at the height of the Cold War and arms race, a general xenophobic mistrust of foreigners, Stephanie McMahon reminding all of us that her dad was targeted by the US Government and trying to equate it to a terrorist attack.
Given that xenophobia is an established pro wrestling trope, it was time to bring back a Middle Eastern heel. Enter Muhammad Hassan and his associate Daviari. But they werent here to justify 9/11 or anything that low. He was an American, he went to the same schools, but didnt care for the prejudice.
Daviari would translate the English promo into foreign dialect, which was instant heel heat and played upon xenophobic tendencies. There was just one problemthe heel had a point. A very good one: Americans did mistreat Americans of Middle Eastern ethnicity poorly over unfounded fears. Much as they tried, the commentary team couldnt really browbeat Hassan for whining and make him a hated heel that way.
Eventually a change was made and they turned up the "foreign" aspects of the charactergiving him traditional garb, focusing less on his personal heritage and more his hate of America. The two attacked Eugene at Wrestlemania 21 only to be thwarted by Real American Hulk Hogan. Hassan would later feud for the Intercontinental belt and be drafted to Smackdown. Shortly thereafter, reality would cost him his job.
On July 4, 2005 an angle was taped between Hassan and the Undertaker where men working for Hassan dressed in all black and welding clubs attacked Undertaker, including choking him with a wire. Three days later, before the episode was to air, a terrorist attack occurred in London. While the footage was removed from broadcasts in Australia and Europe, it aired in the United States in Canada and provoked criticism.
UPN, the network Smackdown aired on, pressured the company into taking the character off the air, and instead of repackaging him due to the heat of the criticism, the WWE released Hassan. Daviari would go on to wrestle in other organizations.