AEW has a diverse roster of talents that have worked in a variety of places, and have tried out many gimmicks along the way. Some have competed within WWE and used characters handed to them by WWE, while others have created lots of different gimmicks on the independent scene.
There have been some strange ones along the way for many members of the roster before they found something that truly worked for them. Whether that was something that they were given, or just because they were experimenting with different things, these are characters that audiences don't often look back upon and talk about.
10 Sting (The Joker Gimmick)
Sting is one of the most highly-respected names on the AEW roster, and someone who has achieved a lot throughout his time in the business. His Crow character is one of the most iconic of all time, but even he opted to go through a strange character change at one stage in his career.
This took place in TNA when he adopted the Joker-style gimmick. This was his own take on the popular Batman villain, and saw him really push himself in terms of how over the top he would go. Some people found it entertaining, while many others were just left puzzled
9 Dustin Rhodes (Black Reign)
Another of AEW's legendary wrestlers who worked a strange gimmick in TNA was Dustin Rhodes. Of course, he made a name for himself by portraying a rather unique character in Goldust, however, that was taken to a new level when he took on the Black Reign gimmick in TNA.
This was a low point in his wrestling career for a variety of reasons on and off-screen. But this gimmick was one that was always strange, from its look to the way it was portrayed. While it allowed Dustin to push his personality, it wasn't one that fans typically remember.
8 Christopher Daniels (Dos)
A lot of fans forget that Christopher Daniels worked for WWE, as the best years of his career came much later than that. However, during his time with the company, he did get to portray a rather strange gimmick in the form of Dos. This was, of course, one-half of the Los Conquistadores tag team.
The masked duo would wear all-gold bodysuits to the ring, and they were there to mainly provide some comic relief at the time. They're characters that WWE has brought back from time to time, mainly because anybody can portray them. But at one point, it was Daniels inside the mask.
7 Chavo Guerrero (Swagger Soaring Eagle)
Chavo Guerrero has only been used sparingly so far by AEW, but he is on their roster currently. He is somebody who has played a wide variety of gimmicks over the course of his career, with the dreadful Kerwin White being something everyone remembers. But that isn't actually the strangest character he has portrayed.
That's because he shares a unique moment alongside fellow AEW star Jake Hager. During Hager's WWE stint he had a mascot known as the Swagger Soaring Eagle. This just so happened to be played by Chavo himself, as he was the man underneath the outfit.
6 Jay Lethal (Black Machismo)
Not every strange gimmick is a bad one, as Jay Lethal's Black Machismo character highlights. This gimmick essentially saw him playing his own version of the Macho Man, Randy Savage. This was complete with similar ring gear and a voice impression, which was spot on.
It's a character that was over-the-top, and may not have been to the taste of everyone. However, the fact he committed so much to the role helped to make this one more acceptable. People could understand and buy into the gimmick, even if it was a slightly crazy one overall.
5 Orange Cassidy (Fire Ant)
Orange Cassidy's current gimmick is a rather random one within itself. However, it is something that has worked for him, providing a great connection to the crowd. Before he adopted that personality, Cassidy was using quite a strange character, playing Fire Ant which was a masked gimmick he had on the independent scene.
It's a unique character, that had him literally dressed like a human ant. It wasn't something that most people would have expected to see, so in that sense, it was a unique gimmick. However, there's a reason that he had more success since he dropped that and worked how he is right now.
4 Serena Deeb (Straight Edge Society)
There is no doubt that Serena Deeb's character on WWE was a strange one. She was a wrestler converted by CM Punk into the Straight Edge Society faction, which led to her head being shaved to kickstart things. The character wasn't around on television for too long due to an incident outside of the ring.
However, it was a rather obscure gimmick that few people will ever get to come close to. Because of that, a lot of fans didn't initially connect the dots to know that it was the same person, showcasing how random this time was for her.
3 Jon Moxley (The Moral Compass Of WWE)
For the most part, Jon Moxley had an excellent career in WWE. He was treated as a main event player, and he put together a Hall Of Fame caliber run. However, as he came to the end of his time with the company, things started to go off the rails, which is why he opted to depart.
That was clear when he started to feud with Seth Rollins. Moxley ended up getting a vaccine in the back, which was against Rollins' illness. He then appeared in a gas mask with other people going along with him, which created a strange gimmick overall.
2 Anna Jay (Magician)
Anna Jay's strangest gimmick actually took place at the start of her AEW career. The company debuted her as a magician, which she had been doing previously. This could have been an interesting thing to commit to if AEW had gone all the way with it, but that wasn't the case overall.
Instead, AEW ended up switching away from this one in order to put her into The Dark Order. This worked out perfectly as it helped to make Anna someone that fans cared about as the group were popular at that time, but it did leave question marks over her original character.
1 Lance Archer (Rock 'n' Rave Infection)
Lance Archer is currently working at the highest point of his career, as a top-tier talent in AEW. He is a monster heel for the company, but that is a far cry from what he was doing in TNA. That's because he was working a comedic rock and roll star style gimmick, but rather than being a serious one, it tapped into comedy.
He would appear with a Guitar Hero instrument, rather than a true guitar, which helped to make this more about fun than anything else. Things were similar to that of 3MB, and it was a strange gimmick for somebody with the main event potential that Archer had.