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In the world of WWE, you live and die by your gimmick.
Sometimes, a gimmick helps elevate a star, such as 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin's loud-mouth take no prisoner attitude, or the cocky heel tendencies of The Rock.
Other times, a gimmick may seem like an impossible task but has gotten over with the crowd thanks to the work of the Superstar using it (e.g. Umaga).
Sometimes though, WWE will help to breathe new life into a wrestler's career, by giving them a gimmick change.
Whilst there have been plenty of gimmick changes in the past, such as 3MB to the Scottish Psychopath Drew McIntyre, sometimes these changes just don't pan out.
Here are six huge WWE gimmick changes that were eventually scrapped before they could make it to TV.
#6 Bob Holly as a NASA employee
When Bob ‘Hardcore’ Holly first debuted in the WWE, he appeared as Thurman ‘Sparky’ Plugg, a race car driver in what Holly must’ve thought would be his most ridiculous gimmick.
Eventually dropping the character for his much better-received Hardcore gimmick, Holly would be one of WWE's toughest competitors before leaving the company.
But in 2006, Holly returned to the WWE, and nearly had Sparky Plugg beaten when he was given the character of a NASA employee.
The WWE’s reasoning was that ECW was set to debut on the SciFi channel, and despite Holly’s years as a brawler, thought the former Hardcore Champion could’ve easily passed as a spaceman.
WWE even wanted him to wrestle in a spacesuit, though the character was fortunately canceled, as it seemed unlikely that Holly, or anyone, could’ve pulled off the ridiculous character in 2006.
#5 Cody Rhodes, Tye Dillinger, and Tyler Breeze as the handsome faction
As Stardust, Cody Rhodes enjoyed playing the cosmic Superstar at first, but the character quickly grew old, and Rhodes quickly began pitching characters to get out of playing Stardust.
One such idea was a trio of very handsome Superstars, a follow-up from Rhodes’ time as ‘Dashing’ Cody Rhodes, comprised of the man himself, alongside Tyler Breeze and Tye Dillinger.
It's safe to say that all three men certainly had the looks to make the gimmick work.
Unfortunately for the future NWA Champion, the gimmick was shot down, and Cody was stuck as Stardust before leaving the company in 2016, with Dillinger being released not that long ago.
Breeze is still struggling to get any main-roster time today but did recently return to the ring as part of the World's Collide tournament.
#4 Christopher Daniels as the Higher Power
Best known for his time in TNA, Christopher Daniels got his first taste of the big leagues in WCW and ECW.
In 1999, Daniels even had a chance of joining the WWF, with booker Vince Russo wanting the Fallen Angel to become the infamous Higher Power.
A robed figure capable of controlling Shane McMahon and the Undertaker as the leader of the Corporate Ministry, Russo was very keen to have Daniels play the role, though Vince McMahon thought he was too small.
Instead, it would be Vince McMahon himself being revealed as the higher power, revealing all of this was just to annoy 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin.
A fun moment that didn't really do anything new, fans can't help but wonder how things would have been if it was Daniels as the Higher Power all along.
#3 Dean Ambrose and AJ Lee as a power couple
As two of the internet’s favorite darlings, there have been plenty of fan fiction written about Dean Ambrose and AJ Lee.
Perhaps after reading one-too-many fanfics, the WWE pitched the idea of having the pair on RAW in 2012 as a power couple who had met at a mental asylum.
Whilst this would’ve pleased many fans online, it was the former Divas Champion who nixed it, saying she didn’t want to make light of mental illness, given prior issues in her family.
Instead, Lee became one of the most successful women in WWE and was at one point the longest reigning Divas Champion of all time.
Though he didn't debut with AJ, Ambrose did well for himself, appearing with the Shield that November at Survivor Series, before leaving WWE this year.
#2 Neville as Mighty Mouse
Neville’s smaller size always made it harder for him with the creative team in WWE.
Vince McMahon usually doesn’t push guys of Neville’s size, unless under very rare circumstances, such as Rey Mysterio or Daniel Bryan.
Despite having an incredible run as NXT Champion, Neville struggled on the main roster, with there once being talks of the Newcastle Superstar portraying a Mighty Mouse character, complete with cape.
Clearly, the character would’ve destroyed Neville’s credibility, and though he thankfully avoided it, he did don a cape.
Instead of Mighty Mouse, Neville returned to the main roster as a heel, becoming Cruiserweight Champion and the self-proclaimed king of the division.
Neville would end up having a few solid years on the main roster before leaving WWE and recently made headlines as just one of several former WWE Superstars to sign with AEW.
#1 Cody Rhodes as heel Tony Stark
As we already know, Cody Rhodes was desperate to ditch the Stardust gimmick.
Pitching a ton of ideas at the company for a change, one idea included the former Intercontinental Champion donning a heel persona based on Tony Stark of Marvel comics.
Rhodes, a known comic-book fan, even had a promo filmed with his wife Brandi, imitating the Superhero’s arrogance, wealth, and stature.
It certainly would've been interesting to see, and with comic book films from both Marvel, DC, and some independents being churned out every year, there's no shortage of comic fans who are also into pro wrestling.
Whilst WWE would reject the idea, leaving Cody stuck in the Stardust role, the promo did leak online, giving fans a glimpse of the Iron Man Cody Rhodes could have been.
