5 WWE stars who need to turn heel

At certain times in wrestling, a superstar may need to turn heel to further a feud, open up new match opportunities or reinvigorate their character. This is normally done in cases when a star has gone stale or needs to have their character repackaged in order to become more engaging or interesting.

In WCW, Hulk Hogan turned heel, teaming up with Scott Hall and Kevin Nash to form the NWO, abandoning his Hulkamania character that was past its sell-by date, and in doing so, established WCW as the top wrestling product in the world. In WWE, the Rock, who was initially booed as a babyface, was turned heel when he joined forces with Mr McMahon in the Corporation before his eventual rise to super-stardom as a babyface. Steve Austin is another example of a character that was the top babyface but eventually went heel in 2001, aligning himself with long-time foe Mr McMahon in order to add depth to his character.

WWE these days can perhaps be accused of 'playing it safe' when it comes to repackaging a character or turning them heel, even if it is briefly, but in some cases, it is needed in order for them to flourish in the long term. In some cases, tuning a superstar heel turn could open up new match opportunities and rivalries and make the product more interesting as a whole. In the cases of Austin and the Rock, their runs as heels did wonders for their characters and helped establish them as top stars. If the WWE are to help some of their current stars reach their potential then turning them heel would not be a bad option to consider.

#5 Big E

Big E has been a face throughout his WWE career

Big E has been one of the most impressive performers on the WWE roster in recent times and the New Day star could flourish in a singles role based on his look, in-ring and promo ability.

The 32-year-old could have an impressive singles run if he were to turn on his New Day teammates and establish himself as a monster heel that bulldozes his way past opponents. A good way to get heat against him would be for him to assault Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods, thus breaking up the hugely popular faction. A feud between Big E and Kingston has the potential for a tremendous series of matches, establishing both as credible solo stars.

Although splitting up the New Day would not be universally popular, it does appear that the group has run its course, particularly as babyfaces. Another option could be for faction themselves to turn heel, but it is clear that Big E has the potential for a decent singles run in the future.

#4 Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins has previously been a heel in the WWE

Arguably Rollins' best run so far in the WWE was as a heel during his time as WWE Champion after WrestleMania 31. Rollins played the role of a vicious and opportunistic champion extremely well and used his connections with the Authority to cement his status as the top dog in the WWE.

Since becoming a face, Rollins' character has remained quite stale, whether this is to do with the WWE not finding the best storylines for him or if it's simply that he doesn't suit the role is unclear, but he certainly needs to add an edge to his character. Turning him heel again would achieve this.

Currently, WWE are lacking serious heels that are uncool and if Rollins were to become the whiny, sneaky and opportunistic champion that he once was, then it could reinvent his character as well as create many feuds and matches with the likes of Roman Reigns, Shinsuke Nakamura and AJ Styles just to name a few.

#3 Bobby Roode

Roode has previously worked as a heel in NXT and TNA

The 'Glorious One' made a name for himself in NXT as a narcissistic but aggressive heel which eventually earned him a spot on the main roster. Roode was also a heel for the majority of his time prior to NXT, in TNA. Roode is clearly experienced in this role and better suited to it when compared to his current persona.

At the moment, Roode is not much more than a wrestler with a popular entrance. If he is to reach the heights that he achieved in NXT, then WWE could turn him into a Lex Luger style narcissist, obsessing over his own body image and mocking audiences. Roode could even emulate the heel character he played in TNA as one half of Beer Money Inc, as a smash-mouthed, aggressive, beer-drinking heel.

Whether the WWE audience will take to Bobby Roode being a heel is unclear. Although his hugely popular 'glorious' entrance in many ways has worked against him, if he were to drop that theme and make a serious run as a detestable bad guy then it could help push him to new heights.

#2 John Cena

John Cena had been

rumored

to turn heel in 2011

One of the most long-awaited heel turns in recent times is John Cena. Although many believe that the time has come and gone for Cena to turn heel, now could, in fact, be the perfect time given his part-time schedule.

Cena himself has always divided audiences. To turn him into a heel character that attacks popular babyfaces and insults the crowd could be one of the biggest storylines in recent times.

It is remarkable that WWE have not decided to turn Cena heel, although it was spoken about briefly during his feud with The Rock in 2011. Much of the decision to not turn Cena heel is down to his merchandise sales, as well as his status as the face of the company and his appearances with the Make-A-Wish foundation. However, with the role of face of the company gradually shifting to Roman Reigns, and Cena appearing mostly in a part-time role to help get younger talent over, it could be time to turn him heel.

Cena as a heel could help elevate young babyface talents to similar positions that he was in during his younger days, and engaging rivalries could be created along the way.

#1 Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns could benefit from tuning heel

It has been widely speculated that Roman Reigns could be turned heel. Although right now it doesn't seem likely, it could be the boost the 'big dog' has been looking for.

Much like Cena, Reigns has received a mixed response from audiences. Although his in-ring work is clearly very good, the WWE crowd have not totally taken to him. This could be for a number of reasons; the fans not wanting another cartoonish star in the mould of John Cena, his standard of match quality or that he is simply boring.

Whilst Roman Reigns' long-term future appears to lie as a babyface, his character needs a period as a heel first in order to inject life into the character. WWE cannot make the same mistake they made with Cena by pushing Reigns too hard and too fast. Instead, they should focus on establishing the 'big dog' as a ruthless, uncompromising heel who tries to beat respect out of his opponents, much like Undertaker's big evil character in 2002.

The WWE audience do not want cartoonish babyfaces anymore. Those days faded after the early 90s with Hulk Hogan's departure. Fans today want edgier, bad ass characters. For Roman Reigns to accomplish this, he must go through the route of becoming a heel much like Steve Austin did and gradually transition into a babyface.