The creative team in WWE all have difficult jobs of trying to create interest in the product. Vince McMahon is ultimately the one running the show and has been for the past few decades. Other people, like Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, have huge input. Producers, writers, and contributors also join in on the meetings that lead to the things we witness unfold on screen. There is a lot of unpredictability regarding how things will shake out backstage as much as it for the viewer. Many former writers and wrestlers have revealed that plans change at the drop of a hat in WWE. Nothing is official until it actually happens on the show and nothing changes along the way.
We will look at some of the major events in WWE that were last-minute changes. These things weren’t the original plans that were supposed to go down in the respective shows, matches or storylines. Each instance on the list features something that took place due to a late change for various reasons. Both positive and negative changes will be examined as to how they impacted the product. Many were amazing things that helped WWE in the short and/or long run. Others played out as regretful decisions that should not have been changed. These are ten last-minute WWE storyline changes that helped the product along ten changes that hurt the product.
20 Improved : Daniel Bryan added to WrestleMania XXX Main Event
One of the best changes to a storyline in WWE history featured the fans forcing the improvement. Daniel Bryan became the most popular WWE star in 2013 entering 2014. WWE still had no interest in him having a top match at WrestleMania XXX.
The plans were for Bryan to face Sheamus in an opening match and for Randy Orton to defend the WWE World Championship against Batista in the main event. Fans “hijacked” segments involving Orton and Batista by chanting for Bryan. WWE had no choice but to book Bryan into the match and have him leave WrestleMania XXX as the champion. The moment lives on for a lot of fans and was the perfect way for Bryan’s journey to culminate.
19 Didn't: Brock Lesnar winning back Universal Championship
A recent last-minute change has fans already upset about the latest Universal Championship reign of Brock Lesnar. The belief was that Roman Reigns ended the era of Lesnar’s part-time title reigns. WWE decided to go back to the Brock well one more time due to Reigns relinquishing the title and going on hiatus to battle leukemia.
The original plan was for Reigns to defeat Lesnar and Strowman in the triple threat match at Crown Jewel. Brock was expected to leave WWE with this as his final appearance. Instead of the title staying on Raw, Lesnar defeated Strowman in dominant fashion and has another title reign. The Universal Championship is again missing from Raw as the show fails to gain any momentum.
18 Improved: Demon Finn Balor vs. AJ Styles
Finn Balor has struggled to get any major matches in WWE since coming back from injury in 2017. Feuds with Baron Corbin, Bobby Lashley, Elias, and Bray Wyatt all have lacked creativity. Wyatt, in particular, fell sick ahead of TLC 2017 and that required WWE to make some changes.
Balor was advertised to wrestle as The Demon against Wyatt in the culmination of their feud. AJ Styles came over from SmackDown to appear as the replacement for Wyatt on the Raw PPV. Balor and Styles had an incredible match. It reminded fans just how great Balor was and helped move Styles closer to another WWE Championship reign a month later.
17 Didn't: Ending Asuka's Undefeated Streak
Asuka started 2018 in such impressive fashion as the winner of the first-ever women’s Royal Rumble match. The historic win continued her undefeated streak from NXT to the main roster. Asuka did not have a single loss on her record heading into a dream match with Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania 34.
All reports and rumors indicated that WWE wanted Asuka to retain her streak for a future match with Ronda Rousey. Those plans clearly changed late into WrestleMania season as Charlotte scored the upset win. Fans were stunned to see Charlotte end the streak. Asuka suffered after this falling lower in the pecking order of the WWE women’s division.
16 Improved: Post-nWo Face Run For Hulk Hogan
Vince McMahon made one of his boldest moves when bringing the New World Order to WWE in 2002. Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, and Scott Hall all signed with WWE with plans to work together for a full year. The heel faction just didn’t have the same luster in WWE as it did in WCW.
Hogan started to receive face ovations from the fans. It made sense since he is arguably the most beloved character in WWE history. Nash and Hall also were struggling to keep up. WWE made the call to have Hogan turn face after losing to The Rock at WrestleMania X-8. Hogan’s resurgence became the biggest storyline for WWE and it gave him another short WWE Championship reign.
15 Didn't: Big Show winning WWE Championship
Survivor Series 1999 is remembered as a negative for many diehard wrestling fans of the time. WWE advertised an epic dream match for the main event of the show. Steve Austin vs. The Rock vs. Triple H was the WWE Championship bout that had fans excited to see the top three stars of the era facing off.
Austin was battling injuries and was planning to take some time off. WWE wrote Austin off by having someone run him over with a car during the show. Big Show replaced him in the match and won the WWE Championship. The last-minute change not only ruined a dream match, but it ended with a less popular wrestler entering to win it.
14 Improved: Becky Lynch turning on Charlotte Flair
One recent instance of WWE lucking into a tremendous angle featured Becky Lynch’s character taking an unexpected turn. Lynch had the crowd support all summer working her way to the Smackdown Women’s Championship match at Summerslam against Carmella.
Charlotte Flair was added to the match a few weeks prior and ended up winning it. WWE planned a heel turn at the last minute for Lynch to destroy Charlotte. The assumption was that fans would view Becky as a villain, but it only added to her popularity. Lynch is still playing the edgy character to ovations comparable to no one else on the roster right now.
13 Didn't: Sheamus winning Royal Rumble
The 2012 Royal Rumble match ended with Sheamus eliminating Chris Jericho to get a title shot at WrestleMania XXVIII. It ended up looking less dramatic when watching back considering Jericho also received a title shot in a more important match on Raw.
Sheamus was in midst of a face run and WWE completely dropped the ball with it. Fans started turning on Sheamus after this win. Jericho had recently returned from a hiatus and had the crowd eating out of the palm of his hands. Sheamus getting the win over him just added resentment. The disdain for Sheamus just grew at WrestleMania when he defeated Daniel Bryan in a matter of seconds.
12 Improved: Ending Jinder Mahal's Title Reign
Jinder Mahal winning the WWE Championship from Randy Orton in 2017 was a massive surprise. WWE committed to Mahal jumping from an enhancement talent to world champion within a couple of months. Mahal scored huge wins over Shinsuke Nakamura to have a lengthy reign.
WWE initially planned to have Mahal hold the WWE Championship until 2018 when John Cena would defeat him at either Royal Rumble or WrestleMania to get his record-breaking 17th title reign. The plans changed as AJ Styles defeated Jinder during an episode of SmackDown. Styles went on to face Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series in a dream match and held the championship for over a year before he lost it to Daniel Bryan on the November 13, 2018 SmackDown.
11 Didn't: Kurt Angle In The Shield
TLC 2017 is mentioned for the second time as multiple changes were made at the last minute. Roman Reigns was dealing with an illness that forced him to miss the big reunion match of The Shield. The match was to see Reigns team with Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose for the first time in years to face off with The Miz, Braun Strowman, Kane, Cesaro and Sheamus in a Handicap match.
Kurt Angle was selected to replace Reigns in his first WWE match in over a decade. WWE wasted the return of Angle in a match where he didn’t even get to come out to his own music or wear his own gear. It also made the heels look worse losing to an older wrestler and two regulars rather than the unbeatable Shield.
10 Improved: Dean Ambrose winning WWE Championship
Dean Ambrose winning his first WWE Championship was not a long-term plan. Roman Reigns was the current WWE World Champion in 2016. Seth Rollins was returning from an injury and looking to win back the title he never lost. Their match happened to take place on Money in the Bank.
Reigns was hit with a suspension due to purported outside-ring issues. WWE struggled to find a solution, but they decided to go with Ambrose. Rollins was the one to actually defeat Reigns. Ambrose then blindsided Rollins and cashed in his MITB briefcase on the same night to win the title. It led to Ambrose having a great title reign and helping establish SmackDown in the brand split.
9 Didn't: The Montreal Screwjob
Bret Hart’s exit from WWE turned out to be one of the most embarrassing moments in company history. The creative control in his contract allowed Hart to turn down ideas. One idea that he refused to listen to was dropping the WWE Championship to Shawn Michaels in Montreal at Survivor Series 1997.
Vince McMahon told Bret that he was going to win the match via disqualification and would drop the title a night later. Instead, he double-crossed Hart and had Michaels win by ringing the bell early during a submission. It showed the ruthless mentality of McMahon and caused many wrestlers to lose trust in him. This did spark a great heel character for McMahon, but that didn't come until over a year later.
8 Improved: Brock Lesnar retaining title at WrestleMania 34
Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns have been feuding for years with the culmination taking part this year. Their second WrestleMania main event took place at WrestleMania 34. Every fan in the venue expected Reigns to win to finally end this story. The live crowd even buried the match with boos, rude chants, and general silence.
WWE changed the finish during the week of the show by having Lesnar retain the title. Vince McMahon surprisingly was wise in picking his spot. He believed he could prolong the match until SummerSlam with the crowd reacting more positively. Reigns did win at SummerSlam and the Brooklyn crowd cheered him for finally ending Brock’s reign.
7 Didn't: Hulk Hogan winning Royal Rumble
The Royal Rumble match is arguably the biggest match of the year for WWE. Not only does it usually have major consequences, but the unpredictable nature of it makes fans wonder about who will win. The 1990 Royal Rumble almost gave us a surprising winner.
Mr. Perfect was originally scheduled to win the match and become a main event heel. This was not a No.1 Contender's match like most other Rumble events. WWE decided to have WWE Champion Hulk Hogan be a part of the match and win it. It was another meaningless win for Hogan instead of the match that launched Mr. Perfect to main event status.
6 Improved: Bret Hart Winning WWE Championship
The mid '90s featured many huge changes coming to WWE. Hulk Hogan leaving the company forced Vince McMahon to finally try to build a new face of the promotion. Bret Hart was the biggest contender for the role after having a WWE Championship reign in 1992-1993.
McMahon was unsure about a wrestler as small as Hart (compared to past main eventers) becoming the face of the WWE. Lex Luger received an opportunity above Bret to seize the role, but fans just did not buy it. The live crowds supported Hart more than Luger. Vince changed the plan for WrestleMania X to have Bret become the champion and face of the company over Luger moving forward. Hart became a WWE legend and Luger left for WCW shortly after.
5 Didn't: Charlotte Flair winning Hell in a Cell
The historic first Women’s match to main event a WWE PPV also featured the first ever women’s Hell in a Cell match. Charlotte Flair and Sasha Banks had the honor of both firsts in the same match. It took place in Banks’ hometown of Boston.
The original plan was for Sasha to win the match and leave as the Raw Women’s Champion. WWE instead changed plans late for Charlotte to once again defeat her and continue the dominance. It helped further Charlotte’s status as the face of the division, but it also hurt Banks. The career of Sasha has never been the same since this loss.
4 Improved: Chris Jericho winning Undisputed Championship
The Invasion angle was a disappointment for WWE, but it did end with a fascinating problem. Both WWE and WCW Championship belts needed to be unified. It led to a four-man tournament with the top four stars in the company at the time. Steve Austin, The Rock, Chris Jericho, and Kurt Angle were the competitors.
Angle was the rumored man to win the title. Jericho even wrote in his book that Angle was bragging backstage about the plans for him to beat Austin and Rock in the same night. The plans eventually changed, and Jericho was getting the moment. Angle was already a true top heel, but Jericho needed something more. The historic win made him a credible superstar in WWE.
3 Did not: Goldberg winning Universal Championship
Goldberg winning the Universal Championship was a risky move by WWE, given his age and lack of in-ring time. The win was done for Brock Lesnar to defeat him and start a long reign as Universal Champion at WrestleMania 34. Chris Jericho revealed on his podcast that these were not the original plans for the title.
Vince McMahon initially wanted Kevin Owens' title reign go into WrestleMania, where he would drop the title to Jericho. The plan would have seen Jericho lose the title to Lesnar one month later. It would have added more credibility to Owens’ title reign and given Jericho another top WM match. The Lesnar title win led to a disaster that hurt the Raw brand for quite some time and is still haunting them today.
2 Improved: Seth Rollins cashing in Money in the Bank Contract
The saga between Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar started in 2015. Reigns won the Royal Rumble match to get a title shot against Lesnar in the main event of WrestleMania 31. Fans rejected the main event and started booing Reigns with strong intensity throughout WrestleMania season.
The match at WM turned out to be compelling. However, the fans weren’t supporting either wrestler. That made it more genius when Seth Rollins came out towards the end of the match to cash in his Money in the Bank title shot and win the WWE Championship. The decision was made very late into WM season and Rollins didn’t find out until that night. It saved the match and ended up being one of the all-time great WrestleMania moments.
1 Didn't: Ending The Undertaker's Streak
One of the biggest decisions ever made by Vince McMahon featured The Undertaker ending his undefeated WrestleMania streak at WrestleMania XXX. Brock Lesnar was about two years into his return to WWE with little momentum. Most fans expected Undertaker to win easily.
WWE went back and forth before making the decision finally during the week that Undertaker would lose cleanly to Lesnar. Nothing good really came from it aside from the entertainment of the flabbergasted venue. Undertaker lost his luster and seems less important when coming back for WrestleMania every year now. Brock became a dominant champion, but his title reigns have hurt the product. Many wrestling fans wish we could go back in time and change this from happening.