Celebrity Wrestlemania Involvement

[AgeOfOrton]

As Wrestlemania 25 is just aorund the corner and we're most possibly going to see a mickey rourke involvement with the Jericho/Legends angle
i was thinking about Celebrity involvements at past Wrestlemanias like Muhammed Ali, Pete Rose, Donald Trump, Mike Tyson, Floyd Mayweather

What Celebrities would you find really interesting at a Wrestlemania and what involvment would you like to see happen with them

this can be fun thinking about it

 

[The Doctor]

Well, I certainly hope Mickey Rourke shows up.

One day, I want to see Collie Buddz show up and do a live performance of Kofi's theme.
Maybe have another story like the Pete Rose-Kane story. something dumb that becomes a tradition where a random monster attacks a random jerk celebrity every year.

 

[The_Don_of_WWE]

I don't like the idea of celeberties appearing at wrestlemania...period. They only come there and get involved to plug something there doing and try to get wrestling fan base. But if you ask is it okay for a current wrestler (Rock not included) to show up at the oscars or any big award show....will they be welcomed with open arms....hell no. So why should we as wrestling fans open them with open arms?. Mick Rourke is an okay because he did do a great wrestling movie. LOL.

 

[Angleslammer]

I'm not a fan of involvement like Rourke's at Wrestlemania, something like Pete Rose, Mike Tyson, or Ali are good because they are there to enhance the match and not take the place of someone else who is deserving. Heck i'm even ok with the Trump thing as it really helped both Lashley and Umaga in terms of push (until Lashley quit anyway)

but a celeb actually coming in and being the centerpiece/part of a match never works. I think the Money Mayweather thing sucked for so many reasons 1) a full time wrestler jobbed to a man 1/3 his size and 2) he was never heard from again!. Look at the Lawrence Taylor thing from WM 11, do you think that was good for wrestling, hell no! it's never a good idea to job a full time good and effective wrestler (ala big show, bam bam,and sadly i think Jericho is going to be included in this as I really do see him losing due to some sort of rourke involvement) job to someone who will never be seen in the wrestling community again, far less a ring.

Look at the current plan, it's safe to say they had hoped or planned for Rourke to participate in a match of some sorts, only to have him back and and settle for the crap they are advertising now.

the problem with a celeb wrestling is while it may get a few more buys on a certain show it really hurts wreslting in the long run and is hurts the credentials of the guy who is the actual wrestling personality. To restate, celebs being there in some sort of capacity to enhance okay, actually particiapting and being involved in a match, never works!

and when and if Jericho actually loses due to rourke hitting him with some sort of knock out punch I'll be so pissed and probably actually stop watching wrestling for the 1st time in years (I think Jericho has been far and away the best and most entertaining thing on raw since last year and the fact he's been screwed over at the biggest ppv ever is a joke)

 

[Santino_Rules]

when and if Jericho actually loses due to rourke hitting him with some sort of knock out punch I'll be so pissed and probably actually stop watching wrestling for the 1st time in years (I think Jericho has been far and away the best and most entertaining thing on raw since last year and the fact he's been screwed over at the biggest ppv ever is a joke)

I couldn't agree more. Having Jericho job (potentially) for some celebrity is an absolute joke. I can not think of one instance where having a celebrity interfere or become involved in a match has worked. Whether it's WWE, WCW, TNA or even old WWF it's never been anything but a giant joke.

 

[NbR1Ch]

I couldn't agree more. Having Jericho job (potentially) for some celebrity is an absolute joke. I can not think of one instance where having a celebrity interfere or become involved in a match has worked. Whether it's WWE, WCW, TNA or even old WWF it's never been anything but a giant joke.

I don't think you're thinking hard enough. IMO, I would say that Mike Tyson being the special guest enforcer at WM 14 for the Austin/HBK title match was played out perfectly. I can honestly say that I may have marked out when Tyson and Austin got into it on Monday Night Raw. I think that is a good example of success when using a celebrity in a wrestling angle.

 

[AgeOfOrton]

i coudnt agree more with any of you celebrity involvement is really not worth the tv time never mind the money vinnies losing form his pockets

but what i was trying to say is do you think theres a celebrity out there that could work?

like look at TNA lockdown Danny Bonaduce definitely is not going to work
thanks for all your replys !

 

[NbR1Ch]

Quick question.......would Dwayne Johnson count as a celebrity? Now that he's not going by The Rock anymore, would that qualify him for this category? If so, then I think he's the only celeb that could actually pull it off.........but to be quite honest, I've never been a fan of his and I wouldnt buy into any angle that he took part in should he choose to give it one last "hoorah"

 

[Angleslammer]

i do agree that Tyson's involvement worked, but it worked because he was used to enhance a stone/cold vs. HBK (DX) feud, and it especially helped since Shawn was very limited in what he could due at the time.

as I said in my above post, I think involvement works when it's as a bystander type thing and has for a few in the past, but not when it upstages the wrestlers, which if rourke shows up will (and even if he no showed the whole plan with him and jericho boxed jericho into a corner for mania that had no ending fans would accept, hogan and stone cold were never going to partake in this)

I really cant think of someone where it would work becasue no celeb is going to want to come in and lay down for a wrestler, which would be the only way it would work,

maybe, if it's a mid card guy getting a rub from the exposure (ala Lashley and Umaga who both got pushed and rubs from being involved in the battle of the billionaires), but what celeb is going to come in and fight with a mid card guy, none!

Like I said before, it's a bad move on wwe and vince's part because the it ultimately hurts their product post celeb involvement and there are no gurantees that celeb involvement will give you the level of interest you desire

Sometimes the buyrates are high, like with trump, but last year they were excepting this boxing cross over from mayweather fans who buy his fights and that just didnt happen, 24 had a lot less buys in comparison to 23

 

[Angleslammer]

and sorry I forgot to answer the question, I dont think any celebrity would work in a major angle, the only way I can think is to have some mid tier celebrity willing to be involved in some type of humerous exchange/run in, ala pete rose

 

[NbR1Ch]

hahaha yeah......like when Steve-O showed up........didn't really have anything to do with anything........I wish he would have had that match at Summerslam........or maybe its just because I love watching him get F*cked up all the time hahaha

 

[2012isbs]

The only kind of Celeb involvement I'm willing to accept is something like what Snoop Dogg did WM 24 he was just there to watch the divas match. Or what Kid Rock's gonna do and do a live perfofmance at the opening or for a wrestler's entrance and very rarely a pete rose thing is fine but not too many times or it looses it's magic. The Mayweather thing was fine until Big Show lost it made no sense Mayweather was one third his size, he was the face and getting booed still and since it was pro wrestling Big show sould've won all in all Celeb involvement fine as long as they don't wrestle or interfere.

 

[ThePeoplesChampion]

Oh come on is every one forgetting the man! Chuck Norris!...but yea they usually use some one no one ever heard of....exception muhammad ali and tyson......to somehow in a miracle win over a wwe star. it cuts themselves down....i mean wwe cuts it self down wit this....really Big show former wwe ,ecw, wcw champion losing to someone half is size is riducolous...and now he's in a main event wit cena and edge...really

 

[jellmoo]

I think it's a double edged sword.

Bringing in a celebrity may, depending on the celebrity, help increase the buyrate for Mania. The flip side is you risk alienating your hardcore fanbase who has seen things like LT and Mayweather end in a debacle.

While small celebrity guest spots don't really harm the product, they don't particularly help either. Did having Snoop Dogg on last year's show increase buyrates? I highly doubt it. In this case, there is little benefit other than trying to look good in the mainstream, and to increase the "glamour" of the event. Given that, I think you have to be very selective as to which celebrities you use.

In the case of celebrities being directly involved in the product, like LT or Mayweather, it may help increase the buyrate, but I am doubtful it's enough to make up for the cost. Again the advantage seems to be in gaining mainstream press and notoriety. Even then, it doesn't always work, as the press has the tendency to report on it more like the celebrity being lowered to wprk in a circus, rather than a celebrity being involved in the Superbowl of Wrestling.

Ultimately, I think it has worked very selectively. Mike Tyson being involved in the HBK / Stone Cold match worked. It sparked interest, gained attention, and likely increased buyrates. Unfortunately, this and Mr T from Wrestlemania 1 + 2 are the only examples of celebrity use that I can think of as having worked.

 

[z99zazn]

Celebrities at Wrestlemania can be alright. The Tyson/DX/Austin angle was pretty cool actually. There wasn't much of a point to it, but it was involved with SCSA becoming champion for the first time. So I liked that involvement. Rourke at WM25 probably won't be that bad, but I would only say that because the angle that he is involved in can't get any worse right now. That had the potential to be pretty awesome, but IMO they kinda fucked it up. Sometimes though, celebrities involved in an angle there are totally stupid. Like the LT and Bam Bam match. I've never seen the whole thing, and I'm a fan of LT, but it sounds like they made that some dumb shit. That should have NEVER been the main event over a title match. Also, the Floyd and Show angle was pretty stupid. Nothing big came out of that. It was pointless and stupid. They put Show in those stupid fucking angles like that. Same with when he wrestled the Sumo a few years back. It's just a stupid idea. And with the Floyd and Show match, that kinda birthed his stupid ass knockout punch, one of the stupidest finishers. But it can be okay sometimes. Hopefully Rourke's involvment is kinda exciting. It'll probably add the most excitement to that legends match.

 

[Dave]

I like Celebrity involvement in Wrestlemania. I like Big Show vs Mayweather angle and the Tyson one was okay. As for this Wrestlemania: Mickey Rourke is only there because he did "The Wrestler" which became a good springboard for a legends angle at Mania. Similarly, I hope someone decides to kill Kid Rock at this years Mania. Like having Umaga drive a truck over Kid Rock's head would be acceptable.

 

[NaturallyPricele$$]

I think the reason Tyson worked was because it was believable. Mike Tyson was a great boxer, at one time the "baddest man on the planet." You could believe that if provoked, Mike Tyson could hold his own against HBK or Austin. Another instance would be when Ken Shamrock was the special enforcer during the I quit match between Austin and Bret Hart. Shamrock was a UFC champion, he could go toe to toe with either wrestler.

By having an actor face your wrestler, you make the wrestler look weak. Either the wrester will beat the shit out of the actor, which makes the wrestler look like a bully or the actor gets one over the wrestler, which makes the entire sport of wrestling look cartoonish and fake. Moreso than what it actually is.

 

[NaturallyPricele$$]

You want celebrities at Wrestlemania? Fine but show them in the front row, have them serve as guest backstage interviewer, but keep them OUT of the action. When was the last time you had a celebrity at the Super Bowl, then they came into the game to play the fourth quarter????

 

[d_henderson1810]

I think celebs work at WM when they have someone sing "America The Beautiful", do backstage interviews, or be someone's manager (like Trump was at WM22). Also, look at Wrestlemanias 1 and 2 (I have the WM anthology of the first 20 WMs), and in the first two, they had heaps of celebrities, but aside from Mr T, none wrestled. They used major names as ring announcers, referees, commentators, bell-boys and managers, and it worked. (WM1 contains such celebs as Mr T, Liberace, Muhammad Ali and Cyndi Lauper, and they all filled their roles perfectly).

I don't like them wrestling though, as it makes it look like "anyone can wrestle". What if Cena had FU'd K-Fed, and K-Fed hadn't braced himself properly (in wrestling, the person having the move done of them does 90% of the work) and got injured, and then sued WWE. I would prefer them to stay away from wrestling in the ring (unless it is Dwayne Johnson).

 

[TheGreatSPAMbino]

You want celebrities at Wrestlemania? Fine but show them in the front row, have them serve as guest backstage interviewer, but keep them OUT of the action. When was the last time you had a celebrity at the Super Bowl, then they came into the game to play the fourth quarter????

Ya but the superbowl is actually a sporting event.

Wrestlemania was built on celebrity involvement and i have no problem with it at all. I think it makes the show special and brings more media attention, its fun seeing these celebrities involved. Internet fans needs to lighten up and accept the fact that this is entertainment. Pete Rose getting tombstoned provided a great moment, Mike Tyson beign involved at wrestlemania 14 was a major factor leading the the WWF boom of the late 1990's. The Mr.T involvment at Wrestlemania really helped launch the event in the first place.

As for who i think would be interesting to see involved with wrestlemania, well, ill just throw out some ideas:
George w. Bush vs. Vince McMahon in a Kiss My Ass Match- each would have a representative similar to the battle of the billionaires and whoever wins obviously has to kiss the other man's ass.
Shaq- apparently he is a huge wrestlign fan and is friends with some WWE superstars. I could actually see this one happening(unlike Bush) and i think it would be cool.
Michaeel Vick- now this guy would be a top heel.