Creating a character that fans can get behind, or enjoy hating, is one of the most difficult parts of making it as a professional wrestler. While modern wrestling has become more about the exciting combat, and more and more wrestlers are playing down-to-earth athletes, wrestlers like Orange Cassidy still prove that having a unique gimmick is one of the quickest ways to become a star.
With picking a gimmick being such a daunting task, a gimmick change is almost always due to waning popularity. However, some brave performers have abandoned the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" mentality. Here are 10 wrestlers that managed to pull off multiple gimmicks.
10 Charles Wright
Wright changed gimmicks more in a decade than most wrestlers do in their entire careers. One of his first attempts was Papa Shango and it immediately gained the audience's attention. Shango was a large, painted up voodoo practitioner. The character was bold and unique, and while it is still remembered, its appeal didn't last long. Within his first few feuds, the crowd turned on the character and dreaded Shango's appearances.
After another short run as a pure fighter called Kama Mustafa, Wright would finally hit gold when he became The Godfather. The pimp character was a hit throughout the attitude era and gave Wright the successful gimmick he'd been vying for.
9 Kane
When The Big Red Machine first debuted, none of his skin could be seen due to alleged third-degree burns all over his body. This would be proved false when he eventually began to wrestle mask-less and shirtless.
Kane's slow transition from fire demon into a human wrestler would set the stage for him to revitalize himself as one of the best heels during WWE's long-winded corporate takeover arc. Kane would become Corporate Kane. A character that embodied the idea of corporations taking away your personality, and turning you into just another cog in the machine. In this case, a 7-foot cog that really hates Daniel Bryan.
8 John Bradshaw Layfield
JBL was one of the biggest heels of the 2000s and even had a lengthy run with the world title. His Texas tycoon character was a cowardly entitled heel and would be the gimmick he still plays on WWE TV today as a commentator.
Before the hatred, JBL found success with a fan favorite gimmick when he was one half of the APA. The tag-team, made up of the men then only called "Bradshaw" and Farooq, was a rambunctious duo that loved to drink, smoke, and fight. The two would find popularity and become tag-team champions.
7 Kenny Omega
Omega spent a long leg of his career letting his in-ring work do the talking, but during his renowned run in NJPW, he created a character that would eventually become one of the most popular in the world. Starting as a nerdy but driven junior wrestler, Omega would rise through the ranks in NJPW. Eventually, he joined the Bullet Club, and The Cleaner character took form.
Kenny went from Cleaner to Terminator to Best Bout Machine quickly. The character started out as Kenny's attempt at emulating an anime villain, but as fans started to side with him, it turned into the exaggerated version of his real personality that he now uses in AEW.
6 Matt Hardy
Even with an arguably bland character, Matt would have a successful career winning tag and singles titles as an athletic mid-carder. Then, late into his run with Impact Wrestling, Matt would find a career resurgence most wrestlers dream about by becoming Broken Matt Hardy.
Broken Matt is a chaotic force that teeters on the line between supernatural and mundane, and just insane. He talks to dead presidents, sees glimpses of the future, and has a lake on his property that can turn wrestlers into their younger selves. The character has let Matt rely on character work instead of just an impressive move-set, and it has been a joy to watch.
5 Cody Rhodes
Cody has gone through multiple major gimmick overhauls and found some success with all of them. Starting as a young pretty boy dynasty wrestler, he would quickly become a snide heel. That character would then become something more deranged when Cody's face was broken, forcing him to wear a mask that he believed made him hideous.
Then, after a short run as a more realistic Cody, he would become Stardust. Part homage to his brother Dustin, and part original idea, Stardust was a galaxy traveling being that just happened to stop on Earth and step inside the ring. After leaving the WWE, Cody would reinvent himself one last time by becoming an exaggerated version of himself, and making it his brand.
4 The Undertaker
One of the riskiest gimmick changes in history, The Undertaker had been using the character of a supernatural dead man for over a decade to great success. Switching so late could have killed his legend status. Fortunately, he pulled it off by becoming The American Badass.
Undertaker would replace his mystic persona with one of motorcycles, bandannas, and rock music. The fans immediately took to this new Undertaker and cheered him as he demolished the faction of the McMahons and corporate DX on his first night back.
3 Mick Foley
If pulling off two different gimmicks is a feat, then Foley deserves special recognition for nailing three and doing it simultaneously. Dude Love was a hippy who just wanted peace. Cactus Jack was basically the Mick Foley character heightened to the highest degree. An outlaw wrestler that wanted to hurt people.
Then there's Mankind. Maybe the most well-known of the three personas, Mankind wore a mask and button-up shirt, creating one of the most unique looks in wrestling. He was a deranged character that wanted to hurt people, but more than that wanted them to hurt him.
2 Hulk Hogan
A risk on par with the Undertaker's, Hulk Hogan had been one of the most, if not the most, popular faces in wrestling. He had gained a monumental amount of popularity as The Real American, and throwing it away could have topped the already huge list of WCW's mistakes.
In a historic moment, Hogan turned heel, becoming Hollywood Hulk Hogan. He started wearing black and took on a cocky demeanor that fans had never seen from the superstar. The turn ultimately worked and brought with it the NWO, and WCW's greatest story-line.
1 Sting
Sting became one of the most popular stars of the 90s. Sporting bright tights, face paint, and a bleached blonde haircut, the Surfer inspired face won world titles and became a sensation. However, as wrestling evolved, the cartoonish heroes of the 80s and early 90s moved towards obsolescence.
Sting took it upon himself to reinvent. As the NWO ran rampant over WCW, Sting donned The Crow look of a black trench coat and white face paint. He spent the better part of a year brooding and tormenting the group and reached popularity levels that even surpassed his previous character's.