"We don’t have a daddy for you" - Shawn Michaels canceled female WWE gimmick, according to a current champion

Shawn Michaels canceled the gimmick of a female gimmick in NXT, according to a current Champion. The Heartbreak Kid is the current Senior Vice President of Talent Development and Creative and heads the creative for WWE's developmental brand.

He has been instrumental in honing the craft of many NXT stars over the years. One such star that benefitted from his decision-making is current WWE Women's Champion Tiffany Stratton.

Stratton started off in NXT in 2021 and had a different gimmick to her current on-screen character. She had the daddy's rich girl gimmick, modeled after the likes of Paris Hilton, but it was ultimately scrapped.

Talking on the No-Contest Wrestling podcast, she revealed the reason why the gimmick was dropped in its early stages.

"So the Daddy’s little rich girl gimmick kind of came from like Sharpay Evans from High School Musical or like Paris Hilton, I think. So, we went with it for a little bit, and then Shawn was like, ‘We don’t have a daddy for you. We don’t really have a payoff. So I think we kind of just need to scrape it,'" she said.

However, the transition to the Buff Barbie persona fit right in for Stratton, and she has excelled in deploying the character, evidenced by a successful main roster run.

"That’s what we ended up doing, which is totally fine because, you know, I don’t think I needed to be like Daddy’s little rich girl. I think, you know, just being the blonde pink Barbie doll was enough. So that’s kind of why that happened," she added.

You can watch the interview below:

Stratton's character has continued to evolve since those days in NXT, and she is now one of the biggest stars on SmackDown, with the fans behind her.

Shawn Michaels revealed why NXT is a unique brand

Shawn Michaels has developed quite a few stars on NXT that have transitioned to the main roster. In an interview with the Boston Herald, Mr. WrestleMania talked about what makes NXT unique.

He brought up the brand's main function as a developmental brand and said that no other brand creates stars only to see them move to another brand.

Shawn Michaels continues to nurture the stars of the future as they aim to become the next breakout star for WWE.

If you use quotes from this article, please credit No-Contest Wrestling podcast and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.

About the author

Sherjeel Malik is a writer at Sportskeeda and covers pro wrestling. He was hooked on the product from the moment he saw The Hardy Boyz jumping off ladders during the Attitude Era. While he comes from an engineering background, Sherjeel’s love for pro wrestling and content writing led him to pursue a career in sports journalism. Before assuming his current role at Sportskeeda, Sherjeel worked at other reputable organizations for five years.

While writing articles, he ensures that he only relies on credible sources for information and covers relevant subjects that do not project an agenda against a particular person or association. WWE legend Paul Heyman once shared Sherjeel’s work on his social media handle.

Sherjeel’s earliest memory of pro wrestling is watching Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Undertaker square off for the WWE Title in the main event of a pay-per-view in 1998. His favorite wrestlers are Randy Orton and Jeff Hardy. While he admires Orton for his character work as a heel, he looks up to Jeff because of his unique wrestling style and risk-taking ability.

If he could go back to the Attitude Era, Sherjeel would like to manage Ken Shamrock and be his mouthpiece. He feels Shamrock’s promo skills prevented him from becoming a main event-level act in WWE. Hence, he would like to help the UFC Hall of Famer get over with fans.

When not writing about pro wrestling, he likes to read classics and fiction books.

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Edited by Sherjeel Malik