WWE fans have famously rejected a number of stars that the company tried to push as main eventers.
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
Of course, the best current example of that is Roman Reigns, the polarizing Raw star who fans made it clear they're sick of seeing at the top of the card. Indeed, they've done everything possible to express their displeasure with the push of Reigns, from starting online petitions attempting to get him fired to walking out of his pay-per-view matches to booing him so loudly he couldn't speak for nearly 10 minutes. In addition to Reigns, the WWE Universe has recently made it clear they didn't want Brock Lesnar hogging the main event spotlight and that they didn't view Jinder Mahal as WWE Championship material.
Even stars like Sheamus and Randy Orton have, in incredibly memorable fashion, felt the wrath of WWE fans who didn't want to see them pushed. Aside from names like Lesnar and Reigns, there aren't a ton of superstars that are being spurned by WWE's most vocal fan base these days, but there are several who are currently right on the borderline of having just that happen. After all, any star who is consistently pushed, whose gimmick never changes or who is in a role that doesn't suit him (whether or face or heel), is in danger of having the WWE fans turn on him.
And for these five stars, they're awfully close to following in the footsteps of Reigns and being wholeheartedly rejected by the WWE Universe.
Alexa Bliss
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Alexa Bliss has accomplished more in two years on the main roster than most wrestlers do in a lifetime, holding the Raw and SmackDown Women's Championship five times combined for a total of more than 400 days.
If fans think Reigns is being "shoved down our throats," what does that say about Bliss? While some evidence indicates that Bliss is a surprisingly good draw and a strong merchandise mover (she's listed among the likes of Reigns and AJ Styles as a "featured superstar" on WWEShop.com), there comes a point when a superstar has so many title reigns and such a consistent presence in the title picture that fans are bound to turn on that star. In fact, if we look at recent WWE history, stars like John Cena, Triple H and Orton, who have all held the world title on more than a dozen occasions, have found themselves being the target of criticism for "burying" other talents and "hogging the main event spotlight" for that very same reason.
What's more, the likes of Cena, Orton and Triple H were (and still are) fantastic in-ring performers, and while Bliss is a tremendous heel and has improved in the ring, she's easily a notch or two below WWE's top female workers like Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair, the latter of which is already seeing the fans turn on her. Thus, at a time when fans prioritize in-ring work perhaps more than ever before, you have to wonder if and when they'll sour on Bliss the way they have with stars like Reigns and Cena.
After all, Bliss just turned 27 years old, and at this rate, she's well on her way to double digit women's title reigns, many of which have put fan favorites like Banks and Bayley on the backburner as WWE has pushed Bliss more than just about anyone in the women's division. And for someone who has held a title for literally more than half of her time spent on the main roster, it's bound to catch up with her unless she quickly develops into a top-tier in-ring performer, which doesn't seem likely.
Braun Strowman
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
It's quite tricky to book a monster like Braun Strowman, who needs the right mix of feuds, matches and storylines to avoid getting stale.
Aside from all-time greats like The Undertaker, fans have traditionally become disillusioned with unstoppable behemoths rather quickly, as they even found themselves getting tired of seeing stars like Kane and Big Show consistently main-eventing over other more talented in-ring performers. Though he's cooling off a bit, Strowman is still one of the hottest acts in the company, and judging by his impressive YouTube viewership and strong merchandise sales, he is not in immediate danger of having a significant portion of the fan base turning on him the way it has with Reigns or Cena.
However, as we've seen with a star like Brock Lesnar, who has lost one match cleanly in roughly four and a half years, the WWE Universe can get quickly fed up with stars who are pushed unbelievably strongly. Strowman, of course, has only been pinned twice in singles matches in more than two years as a singles star (once by Reigns and once by Lesnar), and though his dominance has played a big part in his success, it is virtually inevitable that WWE will reach a point where that same dominance becomes his biggest hindrance.
WWE recently found itself in a similar situation with Asuka, who needed to lose eventually because of the staleness that comes along with being unbeatable for so long, but the follow-up to her loss to Flair at WrestleMania 34 has made her look really bad and caused critics to wonder if WWE has already ruined her on the main roster. Strowman finds himself in this weird position where he's almost always protected but has still yet to win the big one (a.k.a. the Universal title), so how he's booked as for the remainder of 2018 and into 2019 will go a long way toward determining how fans respond to him.
If "The Monster Among Men" becomes a Lesnar clone who decimates all of the competition on Raw or is saddled in this odd tweener role that makes fans feel uncertain about how they should feel about "The Monster Among Men," those same fans are bound to denounce their allegiance to him because the last thing they want to see is another uber dominant star who squashes everyone on the red brand, even if it's a likable star like Strowman.
Elias
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
Elias is currently a cult favorite among fans who enjoy his musical act that almost perfectly blends comedy with classic heel elements, but his character is one that could have a very limited shelf life if adjustments aren't made.
While it wasn't long ago that Elias had WWE's two best-selling t-shirts and his "Walk With Elias" EP has actually made noise on the Billboard charts, even cracking the top three on the Top Soundtrack Charts in America, we've seen other stars accomplish similar feats only to quickly fall back down to reality. One prime example of that is Fandango, whose character is somewhat similar to that of Elias and whose entrance song "swept the nation" back in 2013 when it cracked the UK's iTunes chart. Fandango was all the rage back then because of the sheer ridiculousness of his entrance song and his character, which defeated Chris Jericho in his debut match at WrestleMania 29.
Now? The currently injured Fandango is a glorified enhancement talent who relies mainly on comedy and is seen as one of the biggest failed pushes in recent memory. Another example of a very niche, one-dimensional gimmick that had clear limitations is Bobby Roode, whose push as a top star in NXT and on SmackDown had a lot to do with his theme song "Glorious Domination" hitting the No. 1 spot on the iTunes Soundtracks chart. Since being promoted to the main roster roughly a year ago, however, Roode has consistently tumbled down the card as he hasn't proven to click with the masses because there truly isn't much to his character when it's portrayed as a babyface.
You can even look at other niche gimmicks like Bray Wyatt, who at his peak was selling more merchandise than names like The Shield, Evolution and Hulk Hogan, as the perfection personification of a gimmick targeted at a very specific demographic that can get very stale very quickly. Stars like Roode, Fandango and Wyatt all were once working at or near the top of the card and ranking among WWE's most popular and buzzworthy stars, but their lack of character advancement and storyline development quickly turned fans against them.
If there is a gimmick that is similar to there's in the current WWE, it's that of Elias, who may be soaring to new heights right now as a very charismatic star (especially after his memorable segment with Kevin Owens on Raw) but better enjoy it while it lasts because history says it could end at any moment.
Bobby Lashley
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There are dozens of WWE superstars who are miscast in their current roles, none more so than the babyface Bobby Lashley.
As WWE announcer Jim Ross has pointed out, Lashley could potentially be a massive heel on Raw if and when WWE decided to push him as such. Instead, WWE has pigeonholed him into a babyface role that doesn't suit him, and even though he feuded with a hated heel like Sami Zayn and beat the despised Reigns 100% clean at Extreme Rules, fans aren't reacting to him in an overwhelmingly positive way like they are with Raw's other top babyfaces such as Seth Rollins and Finn Balor.
Indeed, Lashley continues to generate a rather tepid crowd reaction from the WWE Universe, which is its way of saying that they'd prefer to see him in a villainous role. However, WWE continues to do with Lashley what it often does with stars who aren't generating the reactions the company wants: Force him upon fans until they (ideally) accept him. Generally speaking, that almost never works, which is a shame for Lashley because he's done very well as an in-ring performer since his return as April and actually comes across as a very likable guy.
The problem is, Lashley is simply better as a heel, and with some evidence indicating he could be a big draw if pushed right, WWE would be remiss not to tweak Lashley's character to get the most out of him. If that doesn't happen, we'll have another Reigns-like scenario on our hands, where fans respond negatively to a strongly pushed babyface because of the perception that his push is hurting other stars who might be more deserving of that spot, with names like Balor and Rollins fitting that bill in this scenario.
It's not that Lashley is a bad performer. He's just not overly charismatic and comes across as dull as a fan favorite, and unless WWE decides to do something to change that, it's almost guaranteed that fans will reject his push just like they've done with stars such as Reigns, Lesnar and Mahal.
Ronda Rousey
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
By virtually all accounts, Ronda Rousey is viewed backstage as a very hard worker with a great attitude and one who is light-years ahead of where she should be as an in-ring performer.
The issue some fans will have with Rousey, however, is that she just wrestled her first match in April and is already the Raw Women's Champion despite being viewed by many as an "outsider" to the pro wrestling world. Given that Rousey might be the world's most famous female athlete and is easily the most recognizable star in the women's division, it's not difficult to see why WWE has pushed her strongly and why she's already holding a title. However, a small but very vocal portion of WWE's passionate fan base simply won't accept that, no matter how much it makes sense.
There is a sense among those fans that stars who enter WWE from elsewhere, whether it be the NFL or UFC, need to pay their dues and gradually earn their way to the top of the card, and Rousey's lightning quick rise to a women's title reign obviously doesn't mesh with their vision. Especially with Rousey not working what most would consider a full-time schedule and that reminding fans of Lesnar, who's despised for his favorable schedule, WWE could have another Lesnar on their hands in Rousey because fans are, quite frankly, looking for a reason not to like her.
With many fans only wanting homegrown WWE talent, or former indie stars, to hold the company's most prestigious titles, Rousey is viewed as someone who had success elsewhere and then "stole a spot" from more deserving stars. Thus, with reports indicating that Rousey could be one of the first women to ever headline a WrestleMania, she'll get even more criticism from those who believe she doesn't deserve that honor after only being in WWE for a year. Fair or not, that means that the more Rousey is pushed, the more critics she will amass, and the more likely it will be that the fans cheering her today will boo her tomorrow.
After all, if Lesnar can go from being viewed as one of WWE's most likable stars in 2015 to being so hated today, don't be surprised if Rousey follows a similar path.
Blake Oestriecher is an elementary school teacher by day and a sports writer by night. He’s a contributor to @ForbesSports, where he primarily covers WWE. You can follow him on Twitter @BOestriecher.
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