For pretty much every WWE pay-per-view, the company will produce a promotional poster for the occasion, with the requisite information like the date of the show and how to watch it. Typically, the image on the poster will feature a wrestler or group of wrestlers looking menacing while doing something relevant to the theme of the show. These were especially a highlight in the Golden Era, when they hired artists to draw the wrestlers. But that isn’t always the case.
Over the years, WWE has produced a ton of PPVs, and a ton of posters, so there are some that don’t quite fit the formula or are, frankly, bizarre. Let’s take a look at 10 of these weird posters, which run the gamut from the 1990s all the way to the 2010s.
10 In Your House 27: St. Valentine’s Day Massacre (1999)
Weird Photoshop lens flare aside, the poster for In Your House 27: St. Valentine’s Day Massacre is a pretty great image, with Vince McMahon showing up at the viewer’s door for a date and gripping a bundle of roses so hard that he’s bleeding all over the place. It’s a weird one, however, because it’s Vince McMahon on the poster. Even though he wrestles Steve Austin on the main event of this show, to the average beholder, it’s tough to imagine that a deranged looking man in a suit would accurately suggest a pro wrestling event is being advertised.
9 Unforgiven (2001)
The poster for 2001’s Unforgiven, which is full of Alliance vs. WWE matches including Kurt Angle vs. Steve Austin for the Championship, actually features a known pro wrestler on it in Austin himself. However, the execution is totally bizarre, with the imagery of two additional Austin heads popping out of a central Steve Austin looking more like an ad for a particularly sick video game one might find in a comic book or magazine, possibly for the Sega Dreamcast. It’s ambitious, but it works because it’s recognizable as WWE’s top star.
8 Money in the Bank (2011)
Given the way that 2011’s Money in the Bank went down in history for CM Punk’s historic win over John Cena, it’s hilarious that the poster is all about a high concept involving Big Show and Hornswoggle reading a bedtime story about the eponymous ladder match. It’s one of those posters that’s weird on its own, and even weirder in retrospect.
In the poster’s defense, however, despite the bedtime story aspect it still effectively conveys that some crazy ladder match is happening at this show.
7 Royal Rumble (1998)
When it comes time for the annual Royal Rumble pay-per-view, most posters capitalize on the fact that the centerpiece of the show is a big battle royal featuring a majority of the roster. The 1998 edition did not, opting for something akin to an album cover, with the back of Steve Austin’s head and a whole lot of nails in his skull. It wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility to interpret the image as a representation of Austin having a target on his back, as he made enemies out of pretty much the entire roster ahead of the Rumble.
6 Taboo Tuesday (2005)
WWE’s now-defunct Taboo Tuesday (later Cyber Sunday) pay-per-views had a unique premise where fans were invited to head to WWE’s website and vote to determine what would happen on the shows as far as opponents and stipulations. This goofy poster for the 2005 edition basically conveys that, with Kurt Angle and John Cena depicted on opposing computer screens. The really great bit in here is on-screen authority figure Eric Bischoff tied up and gagged in the center, suggesting that the booking power is out of his hands.
5 No Way Out (2001)
There’s an incredible high concept to this No Way Out 2001 poster that’s, ironically, begging to break out. The mat of the ring has been turned into a maze, with some of the walls spelling No Way Out, which is extremely clever, but the execution here is bizarre. On top of the maze/mat is Kurt Angle with his arms outstretched under a spotlight, with the overall effect being that of an inspirational film poster that’s “Based on a True Story.”
4 Royal Rumble (2012)
After 2011’s overstuffed 40-man Rumble, WWE opted for a more typical 30-main affair and for some reason decided to put Santino Marella as a fortune teller on the poster. It’s a weird choice, but otherwise the card had John Cena in a midcard feud with Kane and CM Punk defending the WWE Championship against Dolph Ziggler.
The image appearing in Santino’s crystal ball is himself in a wrestling ring, which ends up coming true, as he enters the 2012 Royal Rumble at #9, only to be eliminated by Cody Rhodes after two-and-a-half minutes.
3 No Mercy (2006)
The main event of 2006’s No Mercy had Booker T — or King Booker, as he was known at this point — defending the World Heavyweight Championship against Batista, Finlay, and Bobby Lashley, so his being featured on the poster alongside his real-life wife Queen Sharmell makes sense. But the poster itself is one of WWE’s weirder ones, as it depicts Booker having slain an enormous cartoon dragon. Never mind that Booker T appears to only be armed with a scepter — it’s still a pretty well done image.
2 Royal Rumble (1995)
As far as going completely against type and expectation, the poster for the 1995 Royal Rumble pay-per-view takes the take. Rather than highlight a gaggle of wrestlers jostling one another in the ring, in this one WWE opted to highlight the fact that the PPV was being held in Tampa, Florida, with a big image of a beach and smaller photos of flamingos and palm trees, with some of images of wrestlers struggling to throw someone over the top rope for good measure.
1 Hell in a Cell (2013)
This Hell in a Cell 2013 poster featuring R-Truth is one of the weirdest posters WWE’s ever made without necessarily doing anything out of the ordinary. On paper, it’s the average pay-per-view poster, with a wrestler and some thematically appropriate imagery in the form of the shadows of the eponymous cell. However, what makes this one so weird is that not only is it WWE’s resident comedy guy R-Truth looking so moody, but he wasn’t even performing on the show — he was on the pre-show panel.