Now before we get into this list, we'd just like to say that we aren't insinuating these Superstars were awful performers - quite the contrary. Their work was impressive on some level, however, there are just one or two aspects about them that people couldn't get on board with - at first. Eventually, they managed to get themselves over in a way that we never thought we'd see.
A lot of the men on this list qualify for the role of a jobber, which is one of the most underrated tools you can use in professional wrestling. Sure it's a tad humiliating to be defeated with such ease week in and week out, but at the very least you're serving a purpose in terms of trying to get another Superstar over.
That's the most positive way you can look at things and as fans, we should be admiring these guys for the grind that they put in throughout their many years in the business. Without Superstars like this, we may not have seen the rise of some of the most popular Superstars in the history of the business. That may sound overdramatic, but it's actually true.
So with that being said, here are five WWE Superstars who were so bad that they became famous.
#5 El Torito
This one isn't so much about El Torito himself being a bad wrestler, but instead about the gimmick that he was given. After all, he was a male bull. Yes, a male bull. It's something that you'd expect to see in the mid-90s era of the World Wrestling Federation, but instead, we were seeing it transpire in a time period where we were meant to have evolved from silly jokes like that.
It wasn't too much of an issue and it was actually quite amusing at times, which is what led to El Torito getting over with the crowd. An obvious helping hand in that was the WEE-LC match that he had with Hornswoggle, which showcased that just because they're small that doesn't mean they can't perform well in the ring. Damn it - we've talked ourselves into wanting to see a Midget Mud Wrestling federation.
Remember Goldberg? Well..
#4 Gillberg
Gillberg was the WWE's parody response to the dominance of Bill Goldberg over in WCW. It was an amusing idea and it played out pretty well, as good old Gillberg waddled out to the ring with sparklers and a fire extinguisher adding to the illusion of his entrance. So, did it get over? Of course, it did, with Gillberg himself actually going on to become the longest reigning Light Heavyweight Champion in the company's history.
The title didn't mean much and he barely even defended it, but the simple fact that he possesses that record is something that should both shock and amuse fans around the world. Obviously, it's a bit insulting to people who have a genuine wrestling ability, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't bask in the glory of Gillberg's ridiculous run.
We go back to the smaller guys for our next entry.
#3 Hornswoggle
Hornswoggle, in case you aren't already aware, debuted as a leprechaun. We could pretty much end his entry there but if you insist that we talk about him, then we shall. The guy was somehow able to maintain a sense of relevancy within the main roster of the WWE and even managed to win the Cruiserweight Championship during the early stages of his career.
Obviously, things died down a bit with the company eventually deciding to release him, but he actually made quite an impressive impact considering how limited many people thought he was originally. Oh, and of course we need to praise him equally for his part in the WEE-LC match. Seriously, go back and watch it.
Now for our most recent entry.
#2 James Ellsworth
James Ellsworth debuted against Braun Strowman, uttering the phrase "any man with two hands has a fighting chance". Little did we know that months on from that moment, he'd be a regular feature on SmackDown Live with three victories over former WWE Champion AJ Styles to his name. Urgh, it pains us just to say that sentence out loud.
Ellsworth has worked his way up from the bottom and gained quite the following on social media following his debut match, which led to WWE giving into fan pressure and bringing him back for an extended run. To this day he's doing some pretty fun work alongside Carmella and whilst he's never really going to amount to much, it's only a harmless bit of fun. Well, unless he wins a title.
We conclude with a fan favourite of many.
#1 Barry Horowitz
If you have yet to experience the greatness of Barry Horowitz then we honestly feel bad for you. The guy was the ultimate jobber to the stars during his time with WWE, being strapped with a number of different gimmicks whilst always managing to fail when given opportunity after opportunity. It was like a demented merry go round.
One of his main highlights may well have been his Intercontinental Championship match against Jeff Jarrett, which of course - he ended up losing. These days Horowitz doesn't enjoy being labelled by the term 'jobber' but considering it was the only thing he's really known for we think he should ease up just a little bit.
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