The WWE is the world's top wrestling company, and it has been for quite some time, and when you’re at that level, you’re bound to hire plenty of beautiful women, but sometimes those girls just don’t have the charisma or talent necessary to succeed at the top level, and they end up out of the WWE. Some come back, and some leave wrestling completely, but you can seemingly never rule out a return to the WWE, but that’s what we will attempt to do today. With the Royal Rumble coming up, there’s plenty of speculation about returns of past women, so today we are going to assess 10 women who definitely won’t return for the WWE in the near future, and 5 that just might.

15 15. Won’t – Torrie Wilson

As great as she looked on Raw 25, we just can't see this happening. Torrie Wilson was a key part in the WWE women’s division in the early 2000s, and will be remembered by many fans for her pure sex appeal (and also for the angle with her dad, Al Wilson and Dawn Marie, but we’d all love to forget that), and even though she’s still got it, there’s no reason to bring her back. Like many others on this list, there has been speculation that she would return to the WWE one day, but she’s been gone way too long for there to be any reason to bring her back. A lot of these girls are from recent times, so they wouldn’t generate anywhere near the nostalgia pop that Wilson would, but people would much rather see the likes of Toni Storm, Candice LeRae or the return of Trish and/or Lita instead, so don’t expect this one to happen.

14 14. Won’t - Aksana

Aksana is the perfect example of how women used to be used in the WWE, because she was only used as a manager or a backstage presence, and even then, she wasn’t very good, and although she won’t be on many people’s radars, WWE is apparently considering everyone for a surprise appearance in the Royal Rumble or anytime in the near future. Even then, we doubt that Aksana would be one of them, because she was just terrible to watch, and although it would be interesting to see how she’d be booked in today’s WWE, it shouldn’t happen. Out of anyone on this list, we are most certain about this one, and even when WWE promote the possibility of anything happening in wrestling, this is one we are confident won’t happen.

13 13. Might Bring Back – Kelly Kelly

The rumors of Kelly Kelly returning to the WWE have been doing the rounds for what seems like years, but with her recent appearance backstage at RAW and guest appearance on the show's 25th anniversary special, it seems like it’s only a matter of time before she’ll be back on our screens, for whatever amount of time WWE see fit. She wasn’t ever the best in the ring, but a very likeable young lady, and improved throughout her time with the company, and if she’s serious about a long-term return, we can definitely see it happening soon. If she were to return in the Women’s Royal Rumble, fans would likely get very excited, and whether it’s a one-time thing or a long-term run, Kelly Kelly deserves the chance.

12 12. Won’t - Emma

Emma is one of the most talented workers to ever set foot in a WWE ring, and in many ways, alongside Paige she is fairly credited for beginning what we see as the women’s revolution in today’s WWE. But for one reason or another, the WWE would never get behind her, and shockingly, after two good performances against Asuka, she was fired in 2017. She’s returned to the independents under her real name of Tenille Dashwood, and will likely tear it up all over the world. Despite the fact that she belongs in WWE, they are too stubborn to bring her back. One must need only look at Emma’s social media to see just how incredibly beautiful she is, but no matter what, don’t expect her to ever be back in the WWE, as she will likely make good money and be treated better on the independent scene.

11 11. Won’t - Cameron

Naomi is currently doing quite well in the WWE, and her "Feel the Glow" gimmick is fairly good, and has gotten over with the majority of the crowd. However, five years ago, no one could have thought that either of The Funkadactyls would succeed in the WWE at all. Unfortunately for Cameron, she didn’t have the ability or the athleticism that her former partner possesses, and when the WWE looks to focus on that rather than physical appearance, there’s just no way that she would survive in today’s WWE. With little fanfare when she was fired from the company, there is just no desire from any amount of fans to have her back, and sometimes the WWE does listen to their audience. This would be a good time to do that.

10 10. Might Bring Back - Kaitlyn

We’ll talk about AJ Lee and how influential and impressive she was during her WWE run later on in this piece, but she can’t do that without a good dance partner, and for her it was Kaitlyn, a fellow NXT competitor on the game show edition's only all-female season. Wouldn't it would be good to see the pair back in WWE together soon? Since leaving, she’s done nothing but improve her physical shape (do yourself a favor, check out her Instagram page), and she’s still a fairly young woman at 31, so a return would present her with some pretty fun matches. Whether it just be a one-off appearance or an extended run, we’d love to see Kaitlyn back, and WWE will likely reach out to her in the very near future.

9 9. Won’t – Candice Michelle

Candice Michelle is the perfect example of what WWE used to look for in a woman, and she came to fame in the worlds top wrestling company with her appearance on the Diva Search. But when fans actually got to see her in the ring, we just realized that she was way out of her depth. She did have some decent matches for the time, but even then she didn’t stand out, and although she was one of the most attractive women to ever work for the WWE, she just didn’t fit in. There have been some rumors that they were interested in bringing her in once the Women’s Revolution got into full swing, but there’s just no point, and with so many better options, it’s unlikely to happen.

8 8. Won’t – Brooke Tessmacher

Brooke Tessmacher’s claim to fame in wrestling came in TNA when she was the partner of Bully Ray during his huge heel run, but she was actually in WWE for a while. Since she’s not been in wrestling for a while since leaving Impact Wrestling, there’s just no reason at all for her to return. We’ve mentioned Kelly Kelly and why she would return, but these two actually came into WWE together as members of ECW’s Extreme Expose, and when Kelly Kelly went on to success and worked hard, Brooke did not. If it was still the mid 2000s where women are treated as sex icons and not for their wrestling, Tessmacher would fit in perfectly. That's not the case these days, and there’s no reason for WWE to bring her in, and they simply won’t.

7 7. Might Bring Back – Michelle McCool

No matter how important wrestling and in-ring performances are becoming to the WWE, we know that Vince McMahon and Kevin Dunn are still backstage, so when they get the chance to bring in a blonde bombshell, especially someone as talented (and connected) as Michelle McCool, you better believe they’ll take it. McCool hasn’t wrestled for the WWE in quite some time, but there have been reports over the last few months that she wants to return, and with her husband The Undertaker still reportedly sticking around, a few appearances in the near future are all but certain. I was a big fan of her partnership with Layla on SmackDown (Piggie James angle aside), so I’d love to see her return, and if she is in as good a shape as we’ve been led to believe, an extended run is a possibility.

6 6. Won’t – Summer Rae

Summer Rae is the prototypical WWE Diva of the past, and her recent firing proves just how dedicated WWE are to the current Women’s Revolution. After how she was utilized over the past two to three years, there’s absolutely no need for WWE to bring her back, and they definitely won’t. She’s doing well since leaving the company (in a non-wrestling capacity), and with the way she was used, it’s unlikely she has any interest in returning, so let’s save any speculation and just flat out say that she won’t be back. For a woman like this whose role was mainly in a backstage capacity, it’s unlikely she’ll be involved in wrestling in any capacity going forward, and although WWE might bring her name up in the future, there’s no chance she’ll be seen on TV again.

5 5. Won’t – Eve Torres

Eve Torres was a big part of WWE’s women’s division in the early 2010s, and despite the fact that she’s left WWE and gotten in even better physical shape, it’s that exact reason why we won’t see her return. She’s doing way too good away from wrestling, so what would returning do for her? With others on this list, you can see a motivation for WWE and a reason behind what bringing them in could do, but with Torres, it just makes no sense, and with so many women excelling in the WWE right now, and with many more on the horizon, there’s just no spot for her. As a one-off appearance, it’s completely possible, but she didn’t get over with fans that much during her run (kissing John Cena in front of Zack Ryder didn’t help), so it wouldn’t generate enough excitement for the WWE to care.

4 4. Might Bring Back – Gail Kim

Gail Kim is one of the most underappreciated wrestlers of this generation, and despite the fact that she has been entered into TNA’s Hall of Fame and officially retired, expect her to get one final call from WWE, because she’s just too good of a performer to ignore. Over the years she went between the two promotions, and had fantastic matches and rivalries with endless amounts of women, and after guys like AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Bobby Roode and Austin Aries have all come to WWE, there’s no reason that Kim shouldn’t get one final match. Compared to the current crop of WWE women, Kim isn’t thought of highly enough in the wrestling world, and that’s a shame, so hopefully the WWE give her one final chance to prove just how good she is.

3 3. Won’t - Melina

During the mid-2000s, Melina was one of the most prominent women in all of WWE, and whether it was alongside Joey Mercury and Johnny Nitro as the tag team/stable MNM or as a solo performer, she did good work, but after the drama that she caused backstage, there’s absolutely no way WWE will have any interest in bringing her back. Her backstage "diva" antics got so bad in fact, that she was brought to "Wrestler's Court" and berated for her actions to the point of tears. With so many talented women out there today, there’s just no need. There were much more promiscuous and dramatic women in the WWE over the years, but those girls aren’t making a return anytime soon either, and with better legends like Trish Stratus and Lita to return for nostalgia pops, don’t expect to hear anything from Melina.

2 2. Won’t – Christy Hemme

The wrestling business has been a crazy one for the last several decades, and rumors/backstage drama have often derailed a career in the WWE. While this one isn’t the most controversial of all those dramas, it will keep the gorgeous Hemme away from ever returning to the company that made her famous. According to reports, Christy Hemme and Triple H could have been a little bit physical behind the scenes, despite the fact that The Game was with Stephanie at that point, and while we aren’t going to speculate on the truth of these rumors, we can guarantee that neither Steph nor Triple H will want her back. This isn’t any great loss, as she isn’t an in-ring performer in any sense of the word, and with WWE’s new-found philosophies when it comes to the women, I don’t think many fans will care that she never appears again.

1 1. Might Bring Back – AJ Lee

AJ Lee is one of the most entertaining women to have stepped foot in a WWE ring, and despite the fact that she is the partner of the very controversial CM Punk, it’s almost a certainty that the WWE will push to bring her back in some capacity over the next few years. The first ever women’s Royal Rumble is coming up, and that’s on the back of some very talented performers showing management what women can do, and if anyone can be credited for starting that, it’s AJ Lee. She’s doing great things since her departure from the WWE, but she has expressed a desire to again step foot inside the squared circle, and with the Royal Rumble coming up, you have to imagine that it’s going through the WWE’s minds.