Once professional wrestling started to get famous around the world, the wrestlers and bookers did all they can to make the product more intriguing and exciting for the fans. That would include working on their characters in the ring and giving them a unique persona which can mystify and intrigue the fans as well. In order to add a new layers to certain characters, some wrestlers started to wear paint on their faces which helped them create their unique gimmicks and also add a bit of intimidation and that "wow factor" to themselves.

The 90s was a prime time for these "face-painted" individuals to make their mark in wrestling, as we saw so many iconic face-painted characters being created during that decade. The paint not only gave them a unique, edgy gimmick but also allowed them to do things not everyone else could, which helped keep the audience enticed and made these wrestlers extremely popular for a bit of time as well. Some of the face-paints were really awesome and creative, while some of them weren't really that impressive.

While some wrestlers over the years only kept the face-paint on for a while before revealing their true self in the ring, these 15 face-painted wrestlers did not budge on dropping their iconic face-paint throughout their career. So let's take a look at these 15 Must See Pictures of Wrestlers Without Their Face Paint.

15 15. Crazzy Steve

Crazzy Steve attained some success in TNA during his time as part of "The Decay" where he portrayed this unstable, diabolical character who loved to dish out punishment to other wrestlers. Steve even won the TNA Tag Team Titles as part of the stable while in the promotion, but left only a few months ago and is rumored to join WWE in the next couple of months. Steve manages to look really scary with that face paint-on, but he's nothing like that without the paint. Even though Steve doesn't normally post any pictures of him without the paint on social media, this rare picture of him without his face-paint on shows how he's nothing like his character in real life. He looks like a normal, friendly person in real life which is nothing like his on-screen character, who only loves for people to wither into decay.

14 14. Doink The Clown

Doink the Clown was a really weird character in the WWE during the early 90s when a random clown started to terrify the audiences by pulling off "tricks" on them. He also started to wrestle after a point, as his mannerisms made him quite scary to some people. Doink actually even won his match at WrestleMania IX thanks to another Doink helping him, but things started going south for Matt Osbourne after that. He was quickly released by the WWE due to his drug-problems but failed to make an impact in ECW without his paint on. As it turns out, Osbourne didn't have the looks to be a successful wrestler and continued his career with the paint on. This picture shows him looking odd without his paint on, as he tragically passed away in 2013 due to drug overdose but leaves behind some terrorizing memories for the 90s WWE fans.

13 13. Umaga

Umaga will always be remembered for being one of the real badasses in the WWE, as he laid a lot of destruction in his path during his stint with the company. He got recognition as this Samoan wildman who would absolutely destroy anything who got in his way and he also provided a lot of good matches at the time as well. Umaga had the capability of being so much more than a mid-card champion, but he left the WWE on bitter terms. Although he never really revealed his face without the paint on TV, this picture of Umaga shows how he looked in real life. Umaga was actually known to be a really cool, fun-loving person in real life, as he also sadly passed away a year after leaving the WWE and will be cherished for the ground-breaking work he did for Samoans at the company.

12 12. Kamala

Kamala brought out the "face-paint" before it became famous in the wrestling industry, as this terrorizing character was defined by his face-paint which suited his heavy figure really well. Kamala remained quite popular as a mid-carder in the WWE during the 80s, wrestling many of the top stars and also bringing a hint of the mystic with his face-paint and terrifying character. But things didn't go so well as he started to age, as Kamala stopped wrestling in the late 2000s and had to get both his leg's amputated because of severe high blood sugar. He now has to live on disability checks and sells handmade wooden chairs, as this picture shows the face of an innocent man without the terrifying face-paint on and shows how much of a good, hard-working man he really was without the paint on.

11 11. Vampiro

Vampiro was one of the really unique, terrifying characters of WCW in the late 90s, with his weird white face paint adding a really scary look to himself. Vampiro was a strong mid-carder for WCW and even won the WCW Tag Team Titles with fellow face-painted wrestler The Great Muta, as he kept on terrorizing the wrestlers with his wacky attitude. But Vampiro doesn't really look so scary without his face-paint on, as this picture shows how he looks like more of a bad-ass than an actually terrifying human being. He's now doing well as a commentator in Lucha Underground, but his time in WCW as this face-painted freak will be remembered for a long time as Vampiro managed to attain a scary look to himself with that paint on.

10 10. Rosemary

Rosemary has to be one of the most unique characters in wrestling now, as this diabolical face-painted female wrestler is definitely one of the best things about TNA right now. She has managed to keep a really terrifying persona to herself over the past few years, getting over as the "leader" of Decay and is currently ruling over TNA as it's TNA Knockout's Champion as well. Rosemary might look scary with her brilliant face-paint on, but she's actually quite the knockout herself when she doesn't put on that paint. This picture of her without her face-paint shows how beautiful she really is in real life, as it only goes to show her brilliant work in making herself so horrifying when she has that paint on, as she deserves all the acclaim that's coming to her for coming up with this wicked character and portraying it phenomenally.

9 9. Demolition

Demolition was one of WWE's top tag teams in the late 80s and a reason for their huge popularity at the time was their amazing face-paint which separated them from the rest of the tag teams. Ax and Smash destroyed their way into becoming the top tag team for the WWE during those years, winning the tag team titles twice and holding it for a record time before the New Day broke it. Although Demolition has kept on wrestling over the years in the Independent circuit with their face-paint intact, they've barely shown their real faces but this rare picture shows them without their face-paint. They look like ordinary men and probably wouldn't have become the revelation they are without the face-paint which built them into legends and helped them become one of the greatest tag teams of all time.

8 8. Abyss

Although "The Monster" Abyss is more popularly known for his terrifying masked persona in TNA, he recently underwent a change when he joined "Decay" and wore face-paint to the ring as part of the stable. His terrifying looks with the face-paint on helped to get the stable over with the fans, with Abyss working as the muscle of the treacherous stable and leading it to success. While that's now ended, Abyss has never really shown his true self to the fans while in a TNA ring as the character. But this picture of him without any face-paint on shows how much of a big, brawny guy he really is in real life as he looks like a legitimate wrestler in real life as well. Abyss has remained a loyal servant for TNA for many years now, but he's always at his best whether he's wearing at mask or face-paint.

7 7. The Great Muta

The Great Muta is not considered as one of the greatest pro wrestlers of all time for no reason, as the Japanese Legend has done it all in his illustrious career. That includes portraying different "personas" which has included in him donning the mask as well as applying face-paint to add to terrifying layer to his character. The Great Muta is renowned for his iconic black face-paint, which helped them become the sensation he is right now. He's mostly wrestled with face paint or a mask on, but this picture of The Great Muta in his true form shows just how he looks like an icon in real life as well. He has the looks of a star and is somebody you wouldn't want to mess around with, but he created different variations of himself to enthral the crowds and is much deservedly held in such high regard by wrestling fans.

6 6. The Boogeyman

The Boogeyman was a really terrifying, disgusting character in the WWE a decade or so back, when this worm-eating, face-painted freak terrified everyone because of his antics. He received a lot of popularity when he feuded with Booker T and terrorized him and his wife, but because of his age and injury problems, The Boogeyman was quite a short-lived experience in the WWE. He has since made occasional appearances in the company to 'scare" certain wrestlers, but not many have actually seen his real face. This picture of the Boogeyman backstage at a WWE event shows how old he really is, as he's looking worn-out and certainly not a WWE material wrestler anymore. The Boogeyman found the right gimmick in this scary gimmick and created some profound, disgusting memories as well.

5 5. The Ultimate Warrior

The Ultimate Warrior was one of WWE's "Superheroes" during the late 80s as his extreme popularity among the fans helped him become one of the company's biggest stars. Warrior had a unique feel to him because of his face-paint which remains iconic to this day, and his hyped up energy and strong wrestling style made many love him. He remained as one of WWE's top guys for a long time, before a dispute between him and the WWE made him leave. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2014, before tragically passing away days after that. But this rare picture of a middle-aged Warrior without the face-paint on shows him in his true form. Warrior probably made the right decision in donning the face-paint and probably wouldn't have attained so much of fame had it not been for it, but he'll always be remembered for his iconic character.

4 4. The Road Warriors

The Road Warriors have to be considered as one of the greatest tag teams of all time, as they revolutionized tag team wrestling with not only their impeccable in-ring work but also their use of face-paint in the 80s. With Paul Ellering as their manager, they dominated everyone around the world and also attained a lot of popularity in the "big leagues" such as WWE and WCW. Their iconic face-paint was definitely one of the best things about them, as they were rarely seen by anyone without the paint on. But this picture shows them with only a tinge of paint on, as you can finally see what these two legends looked like. Both Hawk and Animal looked like legitimate badasses, as their incredible partnership would help bring Tag Team wrestling to the next level.

3 3. Goldust

Goldust has to be one of the wackiest, most bizarre characters in WWE history but that's mostly because of his artistic, brilliant face-paint which has kept him relevant over the past few decades in the WWE. Goldust might always have been a relevant mid-carder at the company who only won the mid-card championships at times, but he has delivered many memorable segments with his weird character and is remembered by a lot of people because of that. But despite being in the business for over 25 years, not many even know what he actually looks like without the face-paint. This picture of a rather Goldust shows how he looked before donning the iconic character and made the right decision in portraying the bizarre one, who has bewildered and dazzled fans for a long, long time now!

2 2. Papa Shango

Papa Shango was another of those really weird characters in the WWE during the 90s, with the "Voodoo Practitioner" causing a havoc in the WWE with his mystical tricks. He was infamous for putting a "Spell" on The Ultimate Warrior which made him puke for a long time during an episode of the WWE. He feuded with the top wrestlers at the time but couldn't get over as expected by the WWE, for which his gimmick was discarded by the company. Although Shango's true face behind the paint was never displayed, he was actually portrayed by Charles Wright who also portrayed the Godfather in the WWE. This candid picture of Wright shows him without any paint on and it's pretty mind-boggling to realize that the terrorizing Papa Shango was portrayed by someone who would later roam around with his "Ho Train!"

1 1. Sting

"The Icon" Sting has deserved that nickname for a long time now, with this incredible wrestling personality revolutionizing wrestling with his brilliant character. Sting started to wear face-paint in the WWE from the early 90s, but changed to a darker, "crow" form to tackle the NWO later on. He kept using this as he later went to TNA where he was treated like the legend he is, winning many titles and helping put over the new promotion. He later finally arrived at the WWE in 2014, where he only wrestled a couple of matches before being forced to retire and later getting inducted into the Hall of Fame. But Sting never really showed his true face to the crowd, as this picture of the Icon without his face-paint on shows how much a cool, amazing guy he is in real life as well and definitely deserved his cult status for all the amazing stuff he's done for wrestling.