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Over the past several decades, WWE has slowly and steadily turned into a global pro-wrestling giant. After Vince McMahon bought the company from his father, he worked towards covering the entire North American market and succeeded in doing so by 2001, when he bought off his longtime nemesis, WCW.
With such a rich history behind the promotion, there are bound to be instances where wrestlers would remind the fans of a WWE Superstar from the past. This usually happens in two cases. There could be a striking similarity between the two wrestlers when it comes to their physical appearance. On the other hand, a wrestler's demeanor, the way they portray themselves, and the manner in which their character behaves in front of the audience, sometimes reminds the fans of a former wrestler.
The WWE creative team also has a massive role here as they repackage these superstars to remind the WWE universe of yesteryear legends to make them more relatable.
Here are five WWE Superstars who reminded fans of a wrestler from the past.
Also read: Shelton Benjamin finally speaks, teases feud
#5 Mason Ryan and Batista
Batista left WWE in 2010, soon after losing an "I Quit" match to John Cena. The next year, Mason Ryan made his WWE main roster debut by interfering in a match between John Cena and CM Punk. Ryan was then presented a 'Nexus' armband by Punk. After a short-lived run on the main roster, Ryan was sent back to NXT. In April 2014, he was released by WWE.
Ryan's career was impacted by comparisons to former Superstar Batista, and it did nothing but harm him, as the pressure of being compared to a former multi-time world champion wasn't something a Superstar wanted to be subjected to. Ryan once spoke about people always telling him that he resembled The Animal.
Yeah man, I get it all the time, I have long hair now, and I didn’t think I looked like him but people would come up to me and say, “Hey! You know who you look like?” I say, “let me take a guess.” I see the resemblance facially. It’s quite strange.
Ryan was majorly an enforcer for CM Punk's now defunct Nexus unit and certainly had the goods to make it big in the WWE. Vince McMahon has always looked at pushing big band bulky superstars who fit the mold and it is a surprise that Mason Ryan was unable to ride the wave.
#4 The Big Show and Andre the Giant
Andre the Giant was one of the most recognizable faces in the world back in the 80s. His sheer size made him a perfect fit to be a WWE Superstar. Years after Andre's unfortunate death in 1993, Paul Wight made his debut in WCW. The resemblance to Andre the Giant was so striking that WCW billed him as the son of Andre!
He soon jumped ship to WWE and became a mainstay in the promotion for years to come. The Big Show went on to win several championships, including two WWE title reigns. There seldom comes a Superstar who's 7-feet tall and has a larger-than-life presence. Andre and The Big Show shared this trait, hence leading to comparisons. Big Show's dramatic weight loss resulted in comparisons dying down to some extent.
Big Show even wore a similar outfit to Andre's which further fuelled rumors that his gimmick took after the former legend's.
Also read: Kane hilariously breaks character in anger management class
#3 Randy Orton and Jake Roberts
Randy Orton donned the persona of The Legend Killer in his early run in WWE. Orton took down a string of legends, including Mick Foley and Shawn Michaels, to solidify the gimmick. By the time 2009 rolled around, Orton got a character change and became a cold, calculating psychopath, earning the nickname "The Viper". At this point, comparisons were inevitable with WWE legend Jake "The Snake" Roberts.
Roberts is known as one of the greatest talkers in the business. The intensity he used to show during his promos was matched by none. Despite delivering his promos in a low, calm tone, they were enough to send chills down fans' spines. Here are two promos by 'The Snake' and 'The Viper', to bring to light how similar they were.
Jake Roberts will unfortunately go down in WWE history as one of the greatest in-ring performers who failed to win a single title. But the fact that in an era where championship gold meant everything and proved legitimacy, Jake trancended this barrier and went on to become a WWE Hall of Famer in his own right.
#3 Mandy Rose and Trish Stratus
In addition to both women being blonde, they shared an uncanny resemblance in terms of facial features. Trish Stratus is widely regarded as possibly the greatest Women's Champion of all time. The side-by-side comparison of both Superstars shows how much they resemble each other in the above picture.
Amidst comparisons drawn by fans, Trish herself felt that Rose resembled her to a certain degree. Trish posted a tweet back in 2017, stating that she looked at a photo of Rose and thought that it was herself.
Stratus recently returned to WWE for a SummerSlam match against Charlotte Flair, and it seems like she is now done with wrestling. It's a shame longtime fans of Trish and Mandy won't ever get to see the two women square off inside the squared circle.
Also read: 5 babyfaces who returned to WWE as heels
#1 John Cena and Hulk Hogan
As was the case with Jake Roberts and Randy Orton, John Cena and Hulk Hogan don't look alike in any sense, but their demeanor and gimmicks were as close to each other as they could ever get.
Hogan was the embodiment of the true American Hero in the 80s, and won his first WWE title by defeating The Iron Sheik. He helped Vince McMahon turn WWE into a major wrestling corporation, as Hogan appeared in the first 9 WrestleMania main events in one or the other capacity.
Cena, although never donned the red and yellow colors, was also portrayed as a pure, good guy who was out to face and fend off the villains, no matter how tough and intimidating they were. Like Hogan, Cena wrestled the best of the bad guys and always came out on top. WWE even had plans to pit these two at WrestleMania 25, but Hogan's injury laid waste to the same.
The Cenation leader has been the face of the WWE for over a decade and has single-handedly carried the company's flag similar to what Hogan did in the early 90's.
Both Hogan and Cena stand for all that's good and have helped WWE gain a positive outlook with the fans.
