Do babyfaces turning heel, really cost WWE money?

[Scuba 06]

Can someone please show me some statistical data that shows WWE has taken a hit financially when a top babyface character has gone heel because I really don't see where this is coming from. I know they are going to lose some fans if a guy like Cena for example, goes heel but I cant see it being very large at all, especially to effect the company financially. Die hard WWE fans will stick by no matter what and I am still sticking with my belief most kids know its a show and not real.

Here are examples where major WWE stars turned heel. Show me how it hurt the company.

1997 - Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart easily the two top stars in WWE went heel, one trashed America and the other made DX, helped spur the attitude era. WWE begins to beat its main wrestling rival in WCW, who had been doing significantly better financially. Austin wasnt a top babyface yet, although he was starting to get hot, so he didnt really fill the void.

1998 - Undertaker & The Rock another pair of stars who, one was already a monster babyface and star of the show, and the other who was coming into position to become a top star, turned heel the same night it all came together for him. Here, yes Austin was the top babyface most of the year, but someone other than him, Mankind got to a chance to become a star while he was out of the picture. So WWE actually made 2 legit stars during this program, with Austin out of the title scene. Turning Rock heel was one of the best decisons WWE ever made, made millions from him.

2001 - Austin the face of the WWE turns heel on the biggest stage at WM, where only 'good guys' are supposed to win. Went on a pretty good and strong heel run. Despite being the face of WWE as you put it, remains champion over 6 or 7 months. Rocky and HHH werent around most of that time, so if they were losing money because he was a heel, why did Austin remain champion so long ?

1996 - WCW allowing Hogan to turn heel did more for pro wrestling than any single event in this history of the businesses. Without that moment, there probably wouldnt have been an attitude era and WWE would still have promoting Doink the Clown, and struggling financially as they did much of the mid-90s.

Even if WWE loses some money in merchandise, which I really dont feel will be changed that much because a star 'turns bad.' A heel turn will generate greater interest in the show overall and opens the door towards more potential fans who will actually be more interested and spend money to buy or go see a s show or ppv. The kid demographic is only one fraction of the audience and they are the one's most likely to always be there, so they dont need much to be catered to. WWE needs to think about other groups of fans they are ignoring to help expand their product beyond their boundries. Vince knows he became successful by taking risk, that's the only way the strong survive in business, otherwise you stay stagnant or flounder.

 

[ahoyhoy]

See the thing is you need a babyface to take over if you turn the current one.

For example, The Rock was able to become the Corporate Champ because Mankind was so over. Yes? It's that simple. Hogan was able to do the nWo thing purely because WCW had too many babyfaces in Sting, Savage, Luger, the Steiners, Flair and the Horseman in their retirement lap (hindsight lol). If Hogan was the only babyface then what would have been the point of turning him heel? Who would he fight?

Cena has floundered too long, maybe, as the top face because there has no-one to take the reigns. Punk and Orton are now become household names respectively, and gives him leeway but if Cena turned heel between 07-10, who would it have been to get over as the next babyface? Who would he have fueded with? A bunch of guys waiting to retire? A bunch of guys nowhere near ready yet? It would have cost WWE money on the basis that it would have been terrible booking, and people don't tune in for badly booked shows.

History shows that, yes, traditionally a top babyface makes more money than a top heel. History shows us that, traditionally, when turning a top babyface heel is usually the last big push of someones career, to help get the next guy over (Backlund and Lawler for Bret, Hogan... should have gone after Goldburg, etc.). But this is not so much a 'but he won't sell kids tshirts!' type of making less money. This is a case of running out things to do, the wrestler being less mobile and able to work, and using the time to pass the torch. They stop making as much money because they just can't wrestle as well anymore. Look at Flair, WWE gave him one last push, mostly as a manager type for Evolution but would put him nowhere near their main event. Because while it is good to see an old timer, you need a fresh show to draw fans. And when a huge face like Cena and Hogan have been mined enough that the crowd don't care to support them as top draws, the show needs to be freshened up, they need to go heel for the evolution of business, to get the next guy over.

 

[Foshinzo]

I think the big difference, and I know this whole thread was made just for the Cena argument, between these guys and Cena is that at that point in their career, they didn't sell as many t-shirts as Cena still does...and Cena just really isn't as good as those guys were.

The logic is this: Cena's big fan base is children; children don't cheer for heels; children won't cheer for a heel Cena. I know some adults like Cena and plenty are indifferent towards him, but the bulk of those, "let's go Cena," chants are through women and children's voices.

Look: are you going to like Cena any better if he's a heel? Just as many people are going to still dislike him because of the jean shorts and the sweatbands, and it's not like he's going to magically become an awesome wrestler. He's going to be the same guy, except he'll just be burying up and coming baby faces instead of heels. People are mad because it happened again with ADR, but would you rather it happen with a guy like JoMo and absolutely end him? I mean, ADR got buried, but a lot of baby faces would get ended. Cena doesn't need to go to heel for any reason.

As for my other argument, and this is a tribute to the others more than it's a slight to Cena, but he's just not as great as they were; they didn't need the belt, the merchandising numbers, etc. to be great. Cena is closest to Hogan of those, but even then, Hogan was better at that game than Cena is. Cena needs to be a baby face. He just needs to. Yes, the WWE would lose money if he was a heel, but it would hurt Cena's career worse than anything. It'd make a little bit of fine television, maybe, but it would just get old too.

 

[ahoyhoy]

It also needs to happen properly if it happens. TNA book face/heel changes once a week and it has no effect whatsoever. When Hogan was the 3rd man, that was the right way. The Montreal screwjob and Tyson stuff to make Michaels the badass for Stone Cold. etc. They made these guys ice cold badasses you loved to hate and bought the tshirt because lol you thought you were rebelling with them.

I'd much prefer Cena to stay face and be booked half-decently than to rush an embarrassing heel turn TNA style.

 

[RicoLen]

It's a little more complex than that. What it comes down to is YES, in fact the #1 drawing babyface turning heel is slightly less marketable if he turns heel. But only slightly. The key is, who fills the void? If they are able to compensate the difference and that shouldn't be too hard, then it's worth doing.

If however your #1 drawing babyface leaves the company to work for your rival, THAT costs you a lot of money because it's not just a slight decrease in sales, it's a deadfall.

In the case of a heel champion, they rarely last because people pay big money to see him lose. So the #1 heel can't really bury anyone, except to emphasize the truth of that person's situation already. Look at Mark Henry, who does he beat? Is he burying them? No, not even on squashes. If they get buried then it's because they were already in a bad place, like JoMo & Khali. It's the babyface that does the burying, not the heel.

So ask yourself, has CM Punk's latest push increased revenue enough to compensate for the projected drop in revenue from Cena's heel turn and then make more money on top?

You can use that formula and apply it to any two top guys in wrestling; 1 being the #1 babyface, the other being some up-and-comer you think would be a good replacement.

 

[therealchosenone]

And when a huge face like Cena and Hogan have been mined enough that the crowd don't care to support them as top draws, the show needs to be freshened up, they need to go heel for the evolution of business, to get the next guy over.

I completely agree, but Isn't that what's happening right now with Cena? It seems like every week Cena is getting less cheers & more boos (Hell last night he barely got any reaction at all).

People are getting tired of his act (casual fans & die-hards alike), They are being drawn more to the C.M. Punks or JoMos.

So (logically) doesn't that mean that a Cena heel turn should be coming soon-ish?

 

[wewantchange]

I completely agree, but Isn't that what's happening right now with Cena? It seems like every week Cena is getting less cheers & more boos (Hell last night he barely got any reaction at all).

People are getting tired of his act (casual fans & die-hards alike), They are being drawn more to the C.M. Punks or JoMos.

So (logically) doesn't that mean that a Cena heel turn should be coming soon-ish?

i agree with u chosen one. atleast im not the only one who wants change. i think cena will turn heel soon the best time to do that is at survivor series with the rock. and ur right punk is getting more fans but if they want to get him over cena he needs to do something rather than get his ass kicked by del rio. he needs to make the change he said he was going to do take out heels that everyone hates have him fued with nery maybe or miz and rtruth which they will return soon and kevin nash. but cena will turn heel because eventually he will be getting nothing but boos and then u turn him heel at MSG he will be getting booed anyways with the rock in the building so turning him heel there WILL WORK and punk will be the new face.

WE WANT CHANGE!
WE WILL GET CHANGE!

 

[therealchosenone]

i think cena will turn heel soon the best time to do that is at survivor series with the rock. and ur right punk is getting more fans but if they want to get him over cena he needs to do something rather than get his ass kicked by del rio. he needs to make the change he said he was going to do take out heels that everyone hates have him fued with nery maybe or miz and rtruth which they will return soon and kevin nash. but cena will turn heel because eventually he will be getting nothing but boos and then u turn him heel at MSG he will be getting booed anyways with the rock in the building so turning him heel there WILL WORK and punk will be the new face.

WE WANT CHANGE!
WE WILL GET CHANGE!

Ignoring the fact that your a C.M. Punk mark (which is fine my me), I think that the Cena heel turn (I'm not saying that the turn will happen, just that it might happen) should come some time in the middle of next year.

Not at SS, but maybe a few months after Mania. If it were to happen it should happen during a "low" time for the company, catching the audience off guard.

And yes we do want change (and the WWE is giving us change, so be enjoy it).

 

[dansaun77]

I guarantee if they finally turn Cena heel, there audience will increase tenfold. So even if one in ten by merchandise, it will make up for whatever revenue is lost. Whomever is put into the number one face role, they will sell bucketloads of merchandise. CM Punk is a heel and his shirts are outselling Cenas now, so imagine how bigger he would be as the number one guy bycking the system ala Austin last decade. The Cena turn will happen, but they need to cash in and make it as big as possible so it means something. It wont happen before next years Wrestlemania

 

[sikkbones]

I honestly feel that cena should have turned hell last fall after the spectacular flop that was legendary....

he was taken off the cards and the house shows for over a month and the only kids related merch you get at the time was Xena crap...

nothing like 3 diffrent cena shirts in my sons size for him to choose from the one time of the year WWE is in my hometown... he got one actually...nice little memory of his first live event.

this year i made sure he didn't get a barney looking shirt but the apex perdator shirt...


but back on topic... they have been shoving cena down kids throats for sometime..... last year he would have had a good reason to turn.... the bomb that was legendary....

but i suspect we will see the heel turn planned or not... at wm 28...

i think Cena will be booed so loudly agianst the rock in the ring.. that vince will call an audible and have cena enter the match a face and leave the ring a killer heel after destroying rock (either after rock pins him or better... have cena turn heel by realizing that playing fair agianst the rock isnt going work so he just loses it.)

 

[Headman]

Can someone please show me some statistical data that shows WWE has taken a hit financially when a top babyface character has gone heel because I really don't see where this is coming from. I know they are going to lose some fans if a guy like Cena for example, goes heel but I cant see it being very large at all, especially to effect the company financially. Die hard WWE fans will stick by no matter what and I am still sticking with my belief most kids know its a show and not real.

Here are examples where major WWE stars turned heel. Show me how it hurt the company.

1997 - Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart easily the two top stars in WWE went heel, one trashed America and the other made DX, helped spur the attitude era. WWE begins to beat its main wrestling rival in WCW, who had been doing significantly better financially. Austin wasnt a top babyface yet, although he was starting to get hot, so he didnt really fill the void.

1998 - Undertaker & The Rock another pair of stars who, one was already a monster babyface and star of the show, and the other who was coming into position to become a top star, turned heel the same night it all came together for him. Here, yes Austin was the top babyface most of the year, but someone other than him, Mankind got to a chance to become a star while he was out of the picture. So WWE actually made 2 legit stars during this program, with Austin out of the title scene. Turning Rock heel was one of the best decisons WWE ever made, made millions from him.

2001 - Austin the face of the WWE turns heel on the biggest stage at WM, where only 'good guys' are supposed to win. Went on a pretty good and strong heel run. Despite being the face of WWE as you put it, remains champion over 6 or 7 months. Rocky and HHH werent around most of that time, so if they were losing money because he was a heel, why did Austin remain champion so long ?

1996 - WCW allowing Hogan to turn heel did more for pro wrestling than any single event in this history of the businesses. Without that moment, there probably wouldnt have been an attitude era and WWE would still have promoting Doink the Clown, and struggling financially as they did much of the mid-90s.

Even if WWE loses some money in merchandise, which I really dont feel will be changed that much because a star 'turns bad.' A heel turn will generate greater interest in the show overall and opens the door towards more potential fans who will actually be more interested and spend money to buy or go see a s show or ppv. The kid demographic is only one fraction of the audience and they are the one's most likely to always be there, so they dont need much to be catered to. WWE needs to think about other groups of fans they are ignoring to help expand their product beyond their boundries. Vince knows he became successful by taking risk, that's the only way the strong survive in business, otherwise you stay stagnant or flounder.

I heard an intervew a while back with Jake Roberts talking about how guys used to throw fits about turning heel because it meant a drop in merch sales. Most merch is sold to younger fans and younger fans like baby faces.

I completely agree, but Isn't that what's happening right now with Cena? It seems like every week Cena is getting less cheers & more boos (Hell last night he barely got any reaction at all).

People are getting tired of his act (casual fans & die-hards alike), They are being drawn more to the C.M. Punks or JoMos.

So (logically) doesn't that mean that a Cena heel turn should be coming soon-ish?

Are you kidding me? That KC crowd gave the most pro-Cena reaction I've seen on tv in a while. He out popped everyone else by far.

 

[ahoyhoy]

I guarantee if they finally turn Cena heel, there audience will increase tenfold. So even if one in ten by merchandise, it will make up for whatever revenue is lost. Whomever is put into the number one face role, they will sell bucketloads of merchandise. CM Punk is a heel and his shirts are outselling Cenas now, so imagine how bigger he would be as the number one guy bycking the system ala Austin last decade. The Cena turn will happen, but they need to cash in and make it as big as possible so it means something. It wont happen before next years Wrestlemania

Guarantee?

TENFOLD?

CM Punk is a heel?

Do you have any idea what you are on about?

Punk is the most over babyface in the company. He has been the main event the past couple PPVs and will be every PPV bar SS and WM. He is the likely choice for Royal Rumble.

Tenfold? You think they'll get a Raw drawing 3 times that of the biggest Attitude era shows? No, wait, you'll guarantee it?

Cena turning heel won't do much unless its done the right way. Just turning him for the sake of it (it'll do tenfold vince, honest!!!) has no relevance and hurts the show.

No the most important thing WWE need to do is become culturally relevant again like they were in 98 and 86. So that means making Punk the voice of the people, it means having Cena and Miz as talking heads, it means exploiting social media, it means redeveloping WWE films and trying to get a genuine hit featuring a wrestler. It means so much more than hotshot Russo booking.

 

[Marv95]

For example, The Rock was able to become the Corporate Champ because Mankind was so over. Yes? It's that simple. Hogan was able to do the nWo thing purely because WCW had too many babyfaces in Sting, Savage, Luger, the Steiners, Flair and the Horseman in their retirement lap (hindsight lol). If Hogan was the only babyface then what would have been the point of turning him heel? Who would he fight?

a)Mankind was still a heel until the Rock turned corporate at SS 98.
b)Flair and the Horsemen were also heels, and Luger was just getting back over as a babyface after leaving the Dungeon of Doom.

For those of you say Cena would have no one to replace him as a top face or he won't have anyone to fight, you have 2 guys to fill the void(3 if you count the Rock)if they were booked properly. Even if it takes them a whhile, it's not like the company would go bankrupt. The "lack" of idiotic kiddie merchandise would be made up for in attendance, buyrates, and overall interest.

And whoever says heels don't sell merchandise hasn't been a fan before 2006. nWo, Orton, Rock, Stone Cold, Bret, HHH, Angle, etc. were all heels who sold. Plenty.

and it's not like he's going to magically become an awesome wrestler.

Neither did Hogan or Rock.

 

[Scuba 06]

Outside of Cena, who I think maybe the only guy has been in this type of situation, has there ever been a star in WWE or any other wrestling organization, where a top babyface got mixed reactions for an extended period of time, but the organization didn't change his character to reflect the will of the fans ? It kind of bothers me that Vince was so fixated on pushing Cena to the very top regardless of fans opinions, not so much now, but during his first initial major push / title run in 2006-2007, when he was getting booed by more than half the crowd every week on Raw, and then at Wrestlemania. I cant think of another instance where WWE would ignore the reactions of the fans or live audience like that. I personally find that insulting as a fan because the reaction of the crowd is supposed to be what shapes the direction of a character or storyline.

 

[ECW Sandman]

I was reading what everyone was posting and I want to say something as well to the OP question No it does not I will tell you why. Back In the 1980's and 1990's Hulk Hogan was the face of The WWF kids liked him parents liked him hell even grand parents liked him he was the All American Hero he could do no wrong fast forward 1996 Bash At The Beach when He turned heel for the first time since the late 70's early 80's, IMO his heel turn in WCW helped his career because he was not getting any crowd reaction at all people were growing tired of the red and yellow say your prayers and eat your vitamins speech so when he dropped the big leg on his best friend ''Macho Man '' Randy Savage and joined forces with Scott Hall and Kevin Nash it made people interested in Hulk Hogan again It was a shocking moment in wrestling but it helped his floundering career and it made him the biggest heel and (star again ). Now to present day John Cena is the second coming of Hulk Hogan in the 80's and 90's but this time only kids and females are cheering him us guys boo the hell out of him because like everyone says He can't wrestle and it's the truth he can not wrestle, people are being over looked because of him every time he comes on RAW it don't matter if it's the begining middle or end of the show all you hear are boo's people are sick of the same old shit week end and week out he's getting louder boo's then Micheal Cole and Vicki combined and he's the damn face of the WWE people are just sick of seeing him as a face WWE really needs to turn him heel they have plenty of faces that can be the '' big draw '' CM Punk can be the top face of the WWE Randy Orton can be the top face of the WWE hell IMO Rey Mysterio Should be the Top Face of the WWE he's liked by everyone. When your top draw is getting booed out of the building and the only thing you see are dollar signs with him but yet 97% of what you hear are boos coming from the crowd something is off. I know he's popular with the kids and it's a kid/ family friendly show but there has to come a time where they just say fuck it and turn him heel like someone else said do it at a PPV either a big PPV or a smaller PPV if you ask me they should do it at WM XXVIII because hell it's in Rock hometown and you know people are not going to boo The Rock in his hometown unlike Cena he get's booed even in Boston Mass. People have just grown tired of him and they want something new and different that's all.

 

[CalciferBoheme]

In general, I don't think turning heel hurts merch, but I think it would for Cena.

if Cena turned heel, he would lose the kids and at least some of the women that are fans now. The problem is that he wouldn't gain the male fans. I'm not saying all sales for his stuff would stop, but it would be impacted.

Also, merch sales are more important now than they were in the past. Not to mention that in the Attitude Era you could like sale as much for a heel as you could a face, which i don't think would quite be true now.

I also don't think Cena would be that great as a heel right now.

 

[wewantchange]

Ignoring the fact that your a C.M. Punk mark (which is fine my me), I think that the Cena heel turn (I'm not saying that the turn will happen, just that it might happen) should come some time in the middle of next year.

Not at SS, but maybe a few months after Mania. If it were to happen it should happen during a "low" time for the company, catching the audience off guard.

And yes we do want change (and the WWE is giving us change, so be enjoy it).

idk what u mean by cm punk mark i dont get a hard on over him. ive only been into wwe watching every week for a year now and i mean it hasent been this exciting since 2004. but ur right he MIGHT turn heel, which i hope he does and i think that it will be at SS i mean its the only thing that makes since. if wwe is at a low why turn him heel i he draws merchandise? then the kids would stop watching it maybe. or they can switch to orton but idk i can make it only wwe can so no need to argue we'll just have to wait and see till SS!

 

[hatehabsforever]

Of course babyfaces turning heel does not cost WWE any money. This is an absurd IWC fallacy which is very prevalent on these boards and I for one am not buying it for a moment, never have, and I have been saying so for ages. To suggest that someone will never turn heel (and in Cena's case, people talk like it's blasphemy to even suggest it) just because they won't sell as many t-shirts to kids borders on the assinine.

Don't get me wrong. I am not suggesting that Cena will turn heel, or should turn heel, or anything else. I'm simply saying that for people to suggest that it could never ever happen because of an adverse effect on merchandise sales just doesn't make sense to me. If it is deemed to be the appropriate move and if is done properly, it will fly and any dip in merchandise sales would be clearly offset by attendance figures, ratings, buy rates, etc., not to mention that a properly executed heel turn can still move a lot of merchandise as well.

There have been plenty of faces over the years who sold a lot of stuff. Hogan, Hart, Rock, Austin, Triple H, and lots of others, and none of them were ever too big or too lucrative a merchandise mover to be unable to undergo a dramatic heel turn. If these guys were capable of turning heel without decimating the company by selling fewer t-shirts, there's no reason why Cena cannot turn either.

Could it happen? Absolutely. Would it work? Depends on how it was done. Will it happen? Probably not. But don't discount the notion just because the IWC thinks it will involve fewer kids buying fewer shirts. That simply doesn't make sense.

 

[iwinulose]

the wwe doesn't lose money because every time someone turns heel someone else turns face. so now we have a new guy who is playing baby face and getting cheered while the guy who was baby face is getting boed. so in reality as long as the wwe compensates for the wrestler they just turned heel then in theory the wwe should do great cause now your building interest in someone new and now the crowds want to see the new face. however its a matter of who the wwe is confident in. if the wwe aren't confident that they have someone talented enough to get over as a face then they wont do it which is why we have super cena and super orton because the wwe doesn't have confidence in anyone else's ability to keep it up.

 

[boozinjedi]

It could actually MAKE money in the long run,let me explain..

IF a moneymaking face turns heel(besides Cena),it will surely hurt in a short term sort of way,BUT

Eventually the turn happens again where the heel then becomes face and the "redemption" angle goes over HUGE!!

Which then in turn sparks new sales of the merchandise.

As for Cena......That's a whole different ballgame. I've given up trying to figure out if/when a heel turn will ever happen.

 

[BillAlfonso]

I think that one thing that has to be considered is that all the guys listed in the OP were from that late '90's Attitude/NWO Era when people became cynical assholes and started cheering for the bad guys. You couldn't have turned Hogan heel in the '80s, that would've really fucked the then WWF up. It was easy to turn Hogan heel when you had Sting there who was, up until Hogan jumped ship, the Hogan of the WCW(hell, they were both from Venice Beach, CA). It'd be difficult to turn Cena heel because there'd be no one left that does what Cena does. I know RKO is completely over second to only Cena himself but Orton, while he has a large fanbase, doesn't have followers like Hogan(Hulkamaniacs), Sting(Little Stingers), The Rock(The People), or Cena(CeNation). Even Austin who was extremely over in that short 2-3 year window didn't have followers but, in RKO and Stone Cold's defense, their gimmicks don't really call for followers.

If Cena turns heel, that will leave all of his younger fans in the dark and I don't think it would raise interest in anyone other than internet fans because the show would still be the same just with Cena as a heel unless they make wholesale changes to go along with it. We're also forgetting all of the publicity that Cena gets for the WWE with his Make A Wish work. Cena should stay face for another 3-4 years until the kids of today grow up and learn to be jackasses themselves and turn on him just like they did Hogan.

 

[Marv95]

Again the Make a Wish Foundation is a pathetic excuse for someone not to turn heel. What, heels can't do any charities outside the ring? And it's not going to destroy the company if Cena ditches them.

They couldn't turn Hogan heel in the 80s because a) He wasn't frequently half-booed out the building and b)Unlike Cena he helped revolutionize pro wrestling as we knew it. With SuperCena being stale for five years ratings, crowds, buyrates and the overall product quality have completely fallen apart.

 

[BillAlfonso]

Again the Make a Wish Foundation is a pathetic excuse for someone not to turn heel. What, heels can't do any charities outside the ring? And it's not going to destroy the company if Cena ditches them.

No, it's not especially for a company that's still smarting from the Beniot Murders. Have you seen a heel make a wish? It wouldn't destroy them but it's a risk that they don't need to take right now. If anything, he just needs to freshen the character up a bit but no need for a full blown change when more than half of the crowd likes him as a face. They need to focus on other changes like restructuring the format of their show from television tapings/PPVs to creative.

They couldn't turn Hogan heel in the 80s because a) He wasn't frequently half-booed out the building and b)Unlike Cena he helped revolutionize pro wrestling as we knew it. With SuperCena being stale for five years ratings, crowds, buyrates and the overall product quality have completely fallen apart.

Yeah but the reason that Hogan wasn't half booed is because there weren't dumbasses in the crowd who thought it was cool to boo the good guys. Cena isn't really half booed, a grown man's voice is just louder than a child or adult woman's. I remember when he played the crowd after Wade Barret "fired" him and he had the dueling chants of "Let's go, Cena" vs "Cena Sucks" and the Let's Go, Cena's were as loud if not louder. I think you're giving Hogan too much credit just like people give Austin too much credit for changing things, both their ascensions were accompanied by wholesale changes in the companies they worked for. Hogan with McMahon spreading the company out of their region and Austin with the content of the show changing, he wasn't the only person beating up Vince.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

You have to have a top guy ready to take the position of the top babyface of the company if you are going to turn your top face heel. In 1997 you had both HBK and Bret turning heel rather quickly but you also had The Undertaker doing a good job as a face and Austin was on the rise. Undertaker's contibution to the WWF is a bit forgotten when we talk about 1997, I feel and I guess I am right because the OP hasn't even mentioned him when he is talking about 1997.

Hogan had guys like Flair, Sting and Savage, two of whom were the biggest homegrown stars of WCW. Undertaker and Rock were not the biggest stars of the WWF in 1998, Austin was, and so it is not exactly a comparable case. You may have a point in 2001 with Rock leaving and HHH gtting injured but the WWF still had veterans like Undertaker. Plus an angle as big as The Invasion was always going to generate interest.

Right now I would say that Cena could have turned heel had it not been for his match against Rock. He needs to be a face at least till then because a major character change for Cena before such a big match would not do him any good. Think about it, it is a clash of the generations type of a match. Cena needs to be in the character that has defined him in this generation. A heel turn would only cheapen the aura of this match.

But after this feud with Rock is over and done with, I would be open for a heel turn. Orton has done a great job as a face so far for more than a year and Punk is doing well so far, even though his pops are not that huge in some places. Well, you can never find out if you have an alternative unless you actually go through with it. And if it does not work you can always turn Cena back, can't you?

Cena's heel turn may not exactly be needed but there is no harm in experimenting with it, after his match with Rock obviously. It's not like TNA would become the number one pro wrestling company if things do not work out. WWE is going to be the king, no matter what.