Anyone that’s been a fan of the WWE for any length of time knows things change on the whims of Vince McMahon, and by things we mean everything.
From last minute rewrites to suit his mood to championship runs, almost nothing was out of bounds when it came to putting out the product Vince wanted, and that often meant changing wrestlers names and looks when they appeared on the main brands.
Over the years, it’s become pretty easy to notice which moments are specifically for his amusement, and changing names and looks is a way for the WWE to rebrand someone to them, effectively wiping away their careers outside the WWE.
But what about those already in the company?
A change here, a change there
It seems strange that he would want to change the names of fan favorites when he’d bring them up from NXT to the main roster, but he did with Pete Dunne becoming Butch, WALTER becoming, GUNTHER, and Austin Theory becoming Theory among others.
Ken Anderson, who was rebranded as Ken Kennedy or Mr. Kennedy as a nod to Vince’s middle name when he signed with the WWE in 2005, appeared on UnSKritpted and he explained that changing his name came directly from Vince.
Vince reportedly didn’t want him to be tied to the Anderson family in the NWA that included Arn, Ole, and Lars.
“Vince was like ‘I don’t want people associating you with them; I don’t want them to think there’s some kind of nepotism involved.’”
While that seems strange given how Vince gave him his middle name, he also loved to tinker with how a wrestler looked and presented themselves.
A famous one was with the Hart Foundation where Bret said they were trying different things, and one day he and the Anvil had their pink and black gear on when Vince yelled across the room that it was their look and it stuck.
While that helped them, some of his other ideas didn’t have the same effect.
He reportedly halted Paige’s (now known as Saraya in AEW) debut on the main roster until she changed her ring gear.
She recently said that Triple H was pushing for her to be brought up to the main roster, but Vince resisted and only relented when she agreed to wear purple instead of her trademark black.
A wrestler’s look can make or break them and no one knows that more than Vince, but it’s also more in line with his personal preference and not what the fans like or expect.
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