5 WWE Superstars who became bigger than the business

#1. The Rock

Dwayne Johnson was a bubbly babyface when he came into the WWE as Rocky Maivia. The fans soon grew tired of this gimmick and began chanting "Die Rocky, die" during his matches.

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This resulted in a character change, and the rest is history. The Rock became one of the biggest Superstars of the Attitude Era, alongside Stone Cold Steve Austin. By the time 2002 rolled around, The Rock had become a recognizable face in Hollywood. His exceptional mic skills had helped him kick start a movie career and he never looked back.

The Rock came back to WWE in 2003 as Hollywood Rock, an annoying egomaniac whose head had become plagued with Hollywood fame. This persona of The Rock went on to become one of the greatest characters to ever step foot inside the ring.

At this point, The Rock is one of the highest paid Hollywood actors and is perhaps the most recognizable WWE face in the world.

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About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

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Edited by Lennard Surrao