WWE Stars Released In The Past 2 Years: Where Are They Now?

Nobody who needs or likes their job wants to be canned. This especially applies to WWE wrestlers who often grow up hoping to work for the biggest professional wrestling company in the world, making good money and cultivating a name in the process. Putting aside the day to chase a dream is the first commitment many wrestlers make before ever lacing a pair of boots. Although many careers have been made in WWE, many more have ended due to that one lone, cold sounding word—release.

As fans, we're used to wrestlers coming and going, oftentimes when a wrestler's name appears on the WWE homepage with the word release in the heading, we envision Vince strolling into the locker room of the wrestler he's about to fire with a pink slip in hand and a scrunched up face preparing to utter the infamous words—you're fired! Another visual that comes up is a phone call from Johnny Ace at the behest of the highest chain of command in WWE, Vince McMahon, stating that creative just doesn't have anything for the newly released star. Regardless if a wrestler comes to a mutual agreement with the company to part ways or he/she is let go without any desire to retire, not only do both scenarios count as a release, they create a lingering curiosity of the whereabouts of the stars we so regularly saw in person or on TV. So, since you're here... I think you'd appreciate an update of 20 released wrestlers of the last two years.

20 Hornswoggle

Starting out in WWE as Finlay's leprechaun pal running interference on his behalf, little by little Hornswoggle branched off from the Irishman and moved out his ring home to become his own man. With highlights such as being Mr. McMahon's illegitimate child, the smallest Cruiserweight Champion in WWE history and having been the man behind the computer screen operating as Raw's Anonymous GM...it was safe to assume Hornswoggle had found a lifetime comedic role in the company. However, the impressive 10-year run would be cut short, no pun intended, with his 2016 release. Since his departure, Hornswoggle has been wrestling under the shortened name of "Swoggle" in Impact against the likes of Bobby Lashley, Aron Rex and Rockstar Spud, being the same little nuisance there as he was in WWE.

19 Bubba Ray Dudley

When the Dudley Boyz returned in 2015, they created a nice nostalgic act that benefited the tag team division greatly. That fun run for old-school fans would be cut short the night after SummerSlam 2016 when the Dudleys announced their retirement, but not after giving us a farewell present in the form of a final 3D. According to D-Von Dudley in an interview, the reason was Bubba wanting to "explore other avenues." Now, we've seen Bubba with D-Von on Raw 25, but if you're curious what those other avenues are, well—look no further than the indies. Immediately after his departure Bubba appeared at House of Hardcore 18, a HOH production, as his TNA character Bully Ray in a match between Broken Matt Hardy and Tommy Dreamer, in which he came to Dreamer's rescue. In 2017, Bully became ROH Six-Man Tag champs with The Briscoe Brothers and as of now is retired.

18 Cameron

Cameron, during her Funkadactyls days, allured the crowd with unique dance moves and stunning looks, making Brodus Clay more of a reason to watch as a result. Her former dance mate Naomi managed to stay in WWE in 2016 when a number of firings took place and even became a prominent female wrestler and SmackDown Live Women's Champion... feats Cameron, who didn't make the cut, would never see. Last seen, at least in the ring, on NXT, Cameron suffered what would be her final defeat in WWE to Alexa Bliss before being released. If you've wondered what Cameron has been up to besides making headlines on TMZ concerning who she does and doesn't date, you can catch her on MTV's The Challenge: Champs vs. Stars.

17 Adam Rose

Mr. Rosebud himself was released in 2016 after a series of problems occurred, A second drug test violation on April 16 announced by WWE would see him out of action, as well as one strike away from a third strike resulting in termination. The Adderall controversy Rose found himself in prompted the uploading of his doctor's notes on Twitter to prove his innocence, but it would turn out it would be a domestic violence dispute resulting in his arrested in Hillsborough, Florida that would end his WWE run. Wrestling under the name Aldo Rose, his indie ventures include matches with another released wrestler in Damien Sandow and a win over Aaron Orion, crowning him International Wrestling Heavyweight Champion and another world title win from an indie league. I'm sure one of you out there wants WWE to scout in the Atomic Wrestling Entertainment Heavyweight Championship.

16 Damien Sandow

First thing's first... YOU'RE WELCOME! Hope you enjoyed my Sandow-inspired sarcasm. This scholarly sacrifice of WWE's growing expenses wasted no time doing what many released stars do - head to the indies. As Aron Rex, he became the very first Impact Grand Champion in Impact history, which he won at Bound for Glory 2016. Not too shabby considering Rex was released by WWE on May 6, 2016, to the disappointment of many WWE fans who viewed the decision as idiotic. Although Rex, formerly known as Sandow, found life outside WWE, he's not yet finished doing so with an expressed interest in becoming an actor. Knowing his work in WWE as well as we do, I think it's safe to say he'd more than likely get the role he auditions for.

15 Summer Rae

Entering the biggest ballroom of her career with her dance partner Fandango, Summer Rae would find herself front and center of the brief push that took her and her dance partner to a land that looked promising for newcomers. This came by way of a feud with a legend like Chris Jericho that saw her dance partner defeating him at WrestleMania 29 (as much as we'd like to forget) and a long, four-way love angle with Lana, Rusev and Dolph Ziggler—or whatever that story was. Unfortunately for Summer, she'd find out in October of 2017 that it doesn't take two to tango in terms of being let go. The good news for fans of Rae, especially the fellows, is that an interview with Rae in FHM giving advice on how to properly pick up a lady at the gym is available to check out, as well as a gorgeous spread of Rae exhibiting her nicely toned body.

14 Alberto Del Rio

It's not hard to keep up with Alberto Del Rio these days. Seems whether you're looking for him or not, you hear news of his drunken stupors, alleged abusive behavior toward ex-girlfriend Paige (or vice versa) and his creative verbal assaults on WWE, particularly aimed at Triple H, aka the "man with the big nose." So, just that fast you got your update on what Alberto has been up to since his 2016 release. It was too easy, but I'll end this update on the former World Heavyweight Champ on a positive note. Del Rio has made his way all around the indie circuit under the ring name Alberto El Patron, wrestling for the likes of AAA, Global Force and Impact, where he is currently signed and previously held the Impact Wrestling World Championship.

13 Ryback

Before calling himself The Big Guy, Ryback was one of the original members of Nexus under the ring name Skip Sheffield. In 2012 when his gimmick changed and Ryback was born, most, including myself, saw a future world champ in the star who would only ever be able to claim the Intercontinental championship before deciding to part ways with WWE. Outside of the WWE, Ryback stayed fairly active online with the creation of his podcast Conversation with the Big Guy, and offline where he wrestles independently for promotions WrestlePro, WrestleCon, where wrestled Colt Cabana, which I'm certain turned into a semi-shoot fight for obvious reasons, and most recently CZW, where he wrestled Joey Mercury. In addition to that, The Big Guy has a book, published under his new legal name, Ryback Reeves, titled Wake Up, It's Feeding Time: A Professional Athlete's Advice on How to Succeed in the Game of Life.

12 Darren Young

One of the original members of Nexus and quite possibly the least popular of the stable managed to find life outside the group as one half of The Prime Time Players, where he won the Tag Team Championships alongside Titus O'Neil. Once the duo broke up, Young was on his own, given Hall of Famer Bob Backlund to be his manager and life coach. The "Make Darren Young Great Again" angle to most was pointless, given how odd of a pairing the two were and the logic of recreating something that wasn't there the first time, but it's what creative had chosen for Young before he was ultimately released in 2017. Though Young's release is relatively new, as you've seen...wrestlers generally don't wait long before jumping into their next venture. For Young, that's wrestling in the indies for WrestlePro where he's scheduled to compete on March 9, 2018 against Fallah Bahh.

11 Alex Riley

Alex Riley looking like a cloned Triple H in his prime, seriously...check out the logo on the trunks, the tape and the pose. He essentially wrapped up his career in the WWE, going from the main roster back down to developmental, then retiring soon after his release. For a guy who looked to have been a future breakout star with some staying power after his breakaway from the Miz, it's a shame his lower-card run ended in May 2016, along with several other talents that same month. Currently, Riley is an actor, he told The Two Man Power Trip podcast, landing one of the most appropriate and fitting roles on Netflix's show GLOW, playing an indie wrestler by the name of Steel Horse. Who better to play a wrestler than a wrestler?

10 Emma

A picture is worth a thousand words. Formerly known as Emma in the WWE where she had her last match on Raw against Asuka before being cut in the fall of 2017, Tenille Dashwood, like many on this list, has made her way to the indies. Even though WWE is the biggest show in town, it's not the only one. Dashwood made an announcement not long after her release that she'd be wrestling for a variety of promotions. One of them was WrestlePro, where she fought Angelina Love. Currently, Dashwood is signed to Ring of Honor, where she's competing in the Women of Honor division. At the moment she's a participant in the Women of Honor tournament, with her sights set on capturing the newly established ROH Women of Honor Championship.

9 Wade Barrett

The leader of the original Nexus, often deemed one of Cena's greatest burials, was groomed to be a top guy, if not a future world champion, the minute he hit the main roster. The Intercontinental Championship and a few prominent feuds with the likes of John Cena and Randy Orton within a six-year career would be the highest Barrett would achieve. Then, his merciful termination fans knew of ahead of time finally arrived on May 6, 2016. Many of us who saw how promising The Nexus looked wondered if that magic could be replicated for Wade elsewhere with better booking. For those of you aware of WhatCulture, an interesting fact for you is that Barrett collaborated with his fellow Englishmen on September 30, 2017 to enhance British indie promotion Defiant Wrestling, formerly known as WhatCulture Pro Wrestling, by providing commentary and stepping in to be the show's general manager, this time using his real name, Stu Bennett.

8 Simon Gotch

Gotch was called up from NXT as one-half of the tag-team The Vaudevillians, which was unique in itself since out of every gimmick in wrestling history...this one had to do with wrestling! Having a tag team paying homage to the Vaudevillian era allowed writers access to creative gold in terms of storyline creation and interactions with New Era wrestlers concerning the shift of the sport, but as we know, the only height the team would reach would be challengers for the tag championships, not actually champions. Gotch would be released on April 5, 2017 with a 90-day no-compete clause. On Vince Russo's The Swerve podcast, Gotch explained how a call from Mark Carrano explained how a barely used team with no accolades "ran its course." In 2017, Gotch adopted the ring name Simon Grimm that he used on the indie scene, where he won the XWA Frontier Sports Championship and competed in Chikara's 2017 King of Trios Tournament.

7 Enzo Amore

Just months ago Enzo was on top of his game. He was free from a feud with Cass nobody asked for, was propped up to be the face of the Cruiserweight Division and became Cruiserweight Champ not once, but twice. It was no secret that Vince needed his charisma to vitalize a dead division. In a tragic turn of events, Enzo would be accused of one of the worst crimes there is to be accused of - assault. This accusation came from a woman named Philomena Sheahan, who filed a report on the alleged incident back in October 2017. Enzo was released in January 2018 for purportedly not informing WWE of Sheahan's accusations. As you can see above, Enzo's tweet maintains his innocence in a public statement for us all to be our own judges until he has his day in court.

6 Austin Aries

Requesting his own release due to growing frustrations with feeling left out of the WrestleMania main card and DVD, and feeling limited to a cruiserweight division he, like Neville, didn't want to be confined in, Aries set out on his own to return to the indie circuit. As you can see here, Aries has found plenty of success in Impact where many ex-WWE stars go to flourish...to no surprise. Aries currently holds the Impact Heavyweight Championship and the Impact Grand Championship at the same time, which I'm certain is reassurance to fans who wondered what type of booking Aries would get outside WWE. In addition to his hectic schedule as a dual champ, Aries is the author of the book Food Fight, about vegan life as a wrestler.

5 Santino Marella

One of the longest running comedic acts in WWE of the last decade has finally been released. Depending on your point of view and if you liked Marella, seeing his name on here could provide you with further amusement. Unlike some of us who laughed plenty thanks to Marella, there is a man I think you've heard of, by the name Jim Cornette, who doesn't find Santino the least bit funny. One of the most popular things Marella has been known for outside WWE is his altercation with Cornette at a XICW Cobo Legends convention where the two had a showdown better than SmackDown over old OVW beef concerning the time Cornette slapped Marella in the face for no-selling The Boogeyman's attempts to be scary. Outside of causing trouble, Santino (or Anthony Carelli, in real life) is a sports analyst on Sportsnet 360's show Aftermath.

4 Eva Marie

Perhaps the first thing you notice here is that Mrs. All-Red-Everything is now Mrs. All-Black-Everything, or that the girl besides her is someone whom you don't want your girlfriend or wife to find in your browser history. As weird as it sounds, this scene here is a conversation about the authenticity of wrestling on Complex's Out of Bounds between Eva Marie, who is the last person you'd expect to defend pro wrestling, and entertainer Mia Khalifa, who doesn't "respect" wrestling because she, like many detractors, thinks it's a "fake" sport. Nevertheless, despite the notion that Eva only cared about wrestling for the fame and exposure, she did defend it, despite the fact she was released, which I feel deserves respect. This interesting panel discussion isn't Marie's only on-screen appearance post-WWE, as the ex-wrestler, model, and fashion designer stars in the 2017 film Inconceivable.

3 James Ellsworth

James Ellsworth is perhaps one of the most famous jobbers in recent history. Ever since he stepped into the squared circle proclaiming that "any man with two hands has a fighting chance," he's convinced WWE he can play any role they needed filled—the classic underdog, a goofy mascot and an annoying manager. Unfortunately for our entertainment and Ellsworth's dream that wasn't supposed to be...he was released in November 2017, but that wouldn't be the end of Ellsworth. Earlier this year he debuted in Destiny World Wrestling where he competed in and won the first-ever Santino Cobra Cup. Ellsworth's most recent venture was the creation of what's called the Intergender Championship that's wrapped around his waist. So, as true to Ellsworth's adorable corniness of creating such a belt to be defended... I guess any man or woman with two hands has a fighting chance at his championship.

2 Neville

Neville has always been deemed The Man That Gravity Forgot, but in his final days before walking out of the WWE, he was the man that creative forgot. That's because he went from a hot prospect mixing it up with heavyweights like then-WWE World Champ Seth Rollins to losing the Cruiserweight Championship to a guy with nuclear heat like Enzo Amore. That added to the fact he was left off not only WrestleMania's main card, but the DVD. It was no surprise that in October 2017, Neville walked out of WWE. Though he hasn't been released, reports say he has asked for it. Depending on how the company feels, Neville could be in limbo for a while. In November, on most wrestling news sites, it was reported that positive conversations between him and the company took place for an eventual return. Meltzer tweeted on January of this year, saying "He's not talking, he's either sitting out his contract or they'll make a deal with him to return."

1 Cody Rhodes

One of the most accomplished WWE alumni on this list is Cody Rhodes. As you can see he's free from the embarrassment of dressing up like a cosmic, comic goofball when just years earlier in the same company he was under the wing of Randy Orton in Legacy. In 2016, Rhodes left WWE in order to build a legacy on the indie circuit like most who were underwhelming for far too long. Rhodes wrestles quite frequently for about as many promotions as he's had gimmicks, e.g. ROH and NJPW, where he's exclusive to neither. He's a former ROH World Champ, WCPW Internet Champion and current member of the Bullet Club in NJPW, where he's dubbed The American Nightmare. One of Cody's most popular goals involves him and his Bullet Club buddies hoping to fill 10,000 seats on their own dime with his All In show on September 1, 2018.

NEXT: Emotional WWE And NXT Goodbyes We Will Have To Deal With In 2018