Bray Wyatt's WWE release was stunning for a variety of reasons

For starters, Wyatt was among WWE's top merchandise sellers, and he was a mainstay in the company's mid-card and main event scenes. He was less than a year removed from a Universal Championship reign when WWE unexpectedly released the third-generation superstar from his contract.

Wyatt developed a strong wrestling fan base due in large part to his crafty promos, creativity and unique ability to continuously reinvent his wrestling character. Wyatt worked closely with Callosum Studios owner Jason Baker during his time with WWE, and the two started working on a film project last winter.

According to WWE Hall of Famer Road Dogg, veteran WWE writer and producer Nick Manfredini was also instrumental in helping Wyatt construct his promos with the company.

"He (Manfredini) wrote with Bray, and so he had Bray's voice down really well," Road Dogg stated during an appearance on Wrestling Outlaws (h/t Sportskeeda Wrestling). "And that's what people fuss about, 'Oh, you have 14 writers.' Well, some of them are specifically for specific talent that really have their voice down. So, Nick was one of those guys. Him and Bray would go sit somewhere.

"Look, Bray was, as you said, he pitched; he is an 'idea guy.' He pitched a million ideas. The issue with Bray was, how do we reel him back in, have him cut this quasi-cryptic promo but also I don't think your cryptic promo works if it's too cryptic, you know what I mean? The message has to get out there, and so, Bray would go out there and cut very cryptic promos, so cryptic that you don't know what he is talking about. I think Nick would bring him around, and so, we get the message now and some evil cryptic speak in there."

Many fans naturally guessed that Wyatt would quickly join AEW or another promotion following the expiration of his 90-day non-compete clause. But the clause expired in late October, and Wyatt has yet to make his return to professional wrestling.

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Multiple reasons were reported regarding WWE's decision to release Wyatt. Among them: He apparently had attitude issues, and WWE chairman Vince McMahon reportedly came to dislike the former WWE and Universal Champion for being openly criticial about WWE creative.

Bray Wyatt's Final WWE Appearances

After several months away from television, Wyatt returned to WWE programming at the Fastlane 2021 pay-per-view. He was then booked for a WrestleMania 37 match against former Wyatt Family ally Randy Orton. Even though Wyatt barely suffered clean losses when he performed as his alter ego, WWE surprisingly had Orton squash him following Alexa Bliss' betrayal.

On the post-WrestleMania 37 edition of WWE Raw, Wyatt stated that he was seeking a fresh start in a "Firefly Fun House segment." Less than four months later, WWE surprisingly released Wyatt from his contract.

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