WWE Divas pressured into Playboy?

[OIL]

WWE Magazine is currently running an article in their latest issue predicting things to come within the company for 2009. One of the predictions pertains to the next Diva that might be posing for Playboy. The prediction reads: "Kelly Kelly graces the pages of Playboy. We can continue dreaming, can't we?" Although there is no confirmation at this time that Kelly Kelly will be appearing in Playboy, it has been rumored for quite awhile now that both WWE and Playboy want Kelly to be the next Diva to pose for the magazine.

I see something wrong with this. I'm all for the Divas posing for Playboy if that's what they want to do, but this article suggests that Divas are being pressured into posing for the magazine by the company. I remember Kelly Kelly saying a few months back that she didn't want to do Playboy yet, if at all, so if she does end up doing it this year then surely the WWE has pressured her into this; unless she just changed her mind.

Either way, do you feel that the WWE are pressuring the Divas into posing for Playboy?

In my opinion, if Kelly Kelly does indeed end up posing, then yes. She didn't want to do it yet, that was obvious, so if she does do it then someone has influenced her decision. I don't see why a Diva HAS to pose for the magazine every year, and it seems that posing for the magazine is something that comes with being a WWE Diva; which it shouldn't.

What do you guys think?

 

[TheOneBigWill]

I'm not entirely sure it's complete pressure. I mean, in the end she has the full ability to say yes or no. While there is without question the open possibility that her sudden push will randomly lmao: randomly) disappear if she turns down the option to pose.. it's still her option, for the most part.

In the end, Kelly Kelly is just another Diva. Melina is the current Women's Champion, and yet she's never been pressured into it. Trish Stratus, Lita & Victoria carried the division for years and weren't pressured into it.

The natural difference is talent. Kelly is more of a pretty face (well, body) than she is a talented Wrestler. But she's been coming along nicely, and I'm pretty sure behind the scenes she likely agreed to pose long before that article was published in that magazine. As a result, that's likely why she's been given this sudden huge boost within the division.

It's almost the only real reason I could see why. Kelly must have already agreed in part, because there are far more talented divas before Kelly, that could've taken the push she's receiving as one of the top face divas on Raw currently.

 

[OIL]

In the end, Kelly Kelly is just another Diva. Melina is the current Women's Champion, and yet she's never been pressured into it. Trish Stratus, Lita & Victoria carried the division for years and weren't pressured into it.

Lita, Trish & Victoria may not have been pressured into doing it; but probably because at that time, the WWE Divas posing in Playboy wasn't an annual thing; merely sporadic.

It's almost the only real reason I could see why. Kelly must have already agreed in part, because there are far more talented divas before Kelly, that could've taken the push she's receiving as one of the top face divas on Raw currently.

Kelly was one of the most over Divas in the WWE long before her switch and eventual push oh RAW. You can't deny that she's improved in the ring also, and while she may not be the most talented, she is one of the most hardworking.

I'm not so sure she would have partly agreed to pose for Playboy just for this push, because after the push and WM match; nothing much happens for the Diva that poses in Playboy. She can get by with her work ethic and improving skills; she doesn't need to get her kit off.

 

[TheOneBigWill]

Lita, Trish & Victoria may not have been pressured into doing it; but probably because at that time, the WWE Divas posing in Playboy wasn't an annual thing; merely sporadic.

Sable, Torrie Wilson, and I swear there was another. Maybe not. Anywho.. all of them were around, and posing before the trio of Status, Lita & Victoria were dominate. I'm almost sure of that, anyways.

And even if that's not the case, the fact remains that when the playboy offers came around.. the likes of Trish, Lita & Victoria (at least in the cases of Lita & Trish) all claimed they'd never do Playboy, because they had talent and wanted to be known for that, and not their body.

I'm unsure on Victoria, because I swear I read a report stating she'd consider doing it. Lita and Trish were definate no's from the start though, especially Trish who was very vocal about the entire thing as being degrading, yet she "respected" her fellow Diva's who did it.

Kelly was one of the most over Divas in the WWE long before her switch and eventual push oh RAW.

Yeah.. she was over, shocker shocker, because she had a gimmick that required her to be a 19 yr. old stripper, more or less. lol

If anything, Playboy is a step UP from that gimmick. Playboy is a highly published, highly respected magazine. While it's still "smut", the fact is it's been noticed as "respectable smut".

You can't deny that she's improved in the ring also, and while she may not be the most talented, she is one of the most hardworking.

As compared to whom? You know, in complete honesty I get annoyed when people claim someone has a "hard work ethic". If you're in the Wrestling industry, wouldn't you all but always have to have a hard work ethic, just to stay in the best possible shape?

And even more so if you're an up-and-comer. It's like you need to prove you belong, which is what Kelly is doing.

I'm not so sure she would have partly agreed to pose for Playboy just for this push

Again. She agreed to come into the company as a 19 yr. old, who took her clothes off willingly. Even in storyline, it's not like this is a step down from that.

because after the push and WM match; nothing much happens for the Diva that poses in Playboy.

That's not true. Ashley likely would've been a bigger diva if she'd just had talent. And Candice Michelle had a Women's title run, and arguably would've been the top diva face today had it not been for injuries. All of which came, after she'd posed.

Torrie didn't begin getting more notice and roles as a manager, until after she'd posed either. Same for Christy.

And all of them get a spot on the WrestleMania card, which some wrestlers never get. So the way I see it, it's kinda justifiable. Maybe degrading, maybe disrespecting, but still understandable.

She can get by with her work ethic and improving skills; she doesn't need to get her kit off.

There's that hard work ethic talk again.

And I just want to clearify, if her skills ever "deminish" it's not like she's going to remain a top diva on any show.. whether she's posing nude or not.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I wish somebody would pressure me into posing for Playgirl. It's just not happening for me.

Trish Stratus never posed for Playboy, and as she was apparently the hottest woman WWE has seen for a while you'd have to bet she was asked. She has a backbone, she didn't want to do it and she said no. Kelly Kelly has already got her tits out for something less high profile, so you'd assume she'd say yes.

WWE might possibly halt somebodys push if they refused to pose, but who wants to watch frigid Diva's anyway?

Does anyone know if the women on the cover get paid in some way or form based off how many copies are sold?

 

[klunderbunker]

I'd say that they are. Since we don't know what goes on behind the scenes we can't be sure. While I can't imagine the company ever directly saying pose or else, they could make it clear that there would be hell to pay if they didn't. Kelly Kelly is replaceable. She's hot, and an ok wrestler. Trish and Lita were hot and good wrestlers. They could be replaced but I don't think it would have been worth the effort. It took time to get them where tehy were and it paid off. Them not doing playboy didn't hurt their careers one bit. Kelly Kelly however isn't Trish or Lita or even close. I'd say there's some pressure, but not a ton overall.

 

[Mr. TM]

I think that the Divas are directly asked whither or not they want to poser. If the say no, it probably is alright, but if they say yes, they are in line for a push that is short lived. I think Kelly Kelly has been asked, she has said yes, and she will be in playboy.

One instance I question is Melina. She was in a storyline about not wanting to pose for playboy. I wonder if that was WWE's way of punishing her for not posing for playboy.

 

[klunderbunker]

I can't imagine that putting a diva in a storyline would be considered punishment. The way the divas are booked today any kind of storyline woudl be viewed as good considering other than that it's just random matches. With Melina it gave something for her to build on instead of "I want a title shot". While it may have been designed as punishment, it might have backfired. There have been plenty of divas that have gotten away with not posing that I'm sure would have been welcomed into the magazine. Either way, I can't picture it as punishment.

 

[smurfkiller23]

I'm like most of the other people who have responded to this post in that ultimately it is the Diva's choice to pose, which leads me to believe that Kelly probably changed her mind. And in a way I can kind of see why they do it. There are only two ways that someone in professional wrestling gains some sort of fame beyond wrestling and they are to either leave for Hollywood (i.e. the Rock) or in the case of the divas pose for Playboy. The interesting case being Stacy Keibler whom I'm sure was probably asked but never did, and since leaving the WWE has made a name for herself in the acting world.

 

[Mr. TM]

Yeah, punishment maybe wasn't the best word, maybe more of an inside joke. I just assume Melina has been asked to be in playboy, many consider her incredibly hot. If she said no, then possibly they made her a story line ribbing her.

For the most part, the Divas who go into Playboy now are lower on the totem pole for Divas. This is why Beth shouldn't be in the running. I wouldn't mind Beth, but I think Kelly Kelly is the one in the run.

 

[My$terio_Fan]

Are they pressured into it? Possibly. I mean to have Vince, creative, and playboy all wanting you to pose there will obviously be some pressure. Also when your a girl like Maria, Ashley, or Kelly who are not known for their wrestling you might feel like the only way to get ahead is to pose which would add to the pressure. But ultimately I think it would be your choice in the end. If you really don't want to pose like Trish, Melina, Lita, ect then you would not comprimise your morals or values. I mean all the girls who have posed seemed to love/enjoy it and rate it as a career high(which is sad). So of course there would be pressure and you might piss a few people off but I think it is ultimately your choice, I believe.

 

[KR_Chalice]

When it comes to Divas and playboy I think the WWE offers incentives for them to take the shoot rather than punishing them for not doing it. As it makes good business sense for the WWE and Playboy to hype up whomever is going to pose as much as possible so more issues sell.

Say for example random diva a posed for playboy, if you didn't watch wwe shows then why would this random diva encourage you to buy the magazine. But say Trish (when she was still under WWE contract) had posed due to her exposure outside the business they copies would have flown off the shelves, well that and her awesome looks.

But as for pressuring, I think the potentially once in a life time push would be a lot more pressure than even the WWE would like to admit. But then again I could see the WWE postponing a push or suddenly stopping one if a "mid card" diva like Katie Lea or Kelly Kelly said no, and using that time to focus on who agreed to it.

 

[Richard]

No, I don't think they're pressured into posing for Playboy (It's not like Vince McMahon's pointing a gun at their heads saying if you don't, you're dead) but there would be the great push incentives for the WWE Divas who do, such as a possible WrestleMania match that they are the focus of, a possible WWE Womens or Diva's Championship opportunity or even reign.

Kelly Kelly isn't a great wrestler, she's mainly there for everyone to look at and this would be her opportunity to get a push right around WrestleMania season and if she doesn't take this opportunity, she might not get a push like the pushes that usually come around WrestleMania for the women who take the playboy deal. The Diva's like Trish Stratus and Lita did not have to worry about not posing for Playboy because they have something that Kelly Kelly doesn't have, great wrestling ability so they wouldn't have needed Playboy to get pushed.

 

[C. Angle]

I'm like most of the other people who have responded to this post in that ultimately it is the Diva's choice to pose, which leads me to believe that Kelly probably changed her mind. And in a way I can kind of see why they do it. There are only two ways that someone in professional wrestling gains some sort of fame beyond wrestling and they are to either leave for Hollywood (i.e. the Rock) or in the case of the divas pose for Playboy.

The interesting case being Stacy Keibler whom I'm sure was probably asked but never did, and since leaving the WWE has made a name for herself in the acting world.

are you kidding me? you actually think stacy keibler has made a name for herself in the acting world?? HAHAHHHAHA you're so delusional....what has she done? she was on the george lopez show and it got canceled. she was in october road, and it got canceled..then samurai girl and it got shitty reviews. i dont know what planet you're one, but stacy hasn't done crap since leaving the wwe besides being a show killer.

Now as for being pressured...no they arent, but...doing playboy will "help" their career. but then again...doing playboy always ends up killing your career...lets see shall we?

Sable...fired---but many will say she quit. all she has going for her now is being knocked up by lesnar
Torrie..fired---same for torrie, but didnt do much of anything once she did playboy and had back surgery..for what i dont know
Christy...fired---budget cuts...whatever.
Chyna...fired---yeah we all know what happened there
Maria...prolly will be fired soon. she hasnt done shit since she posed
Candice...has done nothing either. sure she got her hands on the title, but then what? since being an accident on two legs i see her being fired real soon.
Ashley...didnt do shit after posing, then left for some dumb ass reason..she was on the chopping block anyway

For me, playboy gives the divas a chance for their 15 minutes of fame, but it's really a career killer i think. as far as kelly posing, i'm sure she will and hopefully, it will be her decision.

what i hate is when people dont give her credit where credit is due. sure, she isnt as good as trish or lita, but in 2 years time...she will be. trust me. she's young and she's getting better every week. she sure as hell has more talent than maria

 

[travistragic]

Got to go with Triple R for hitting the nail on the head, though I'm pretty sure we'll all be hitting the nail on the head. WWE does not pressure divas into posing, because obviously they could be super-sued for that kind of stuff, but the option of posing is pressure in and of itself. Do you want to allow to men to look at your naughty parts in exchange for a good sum of money and an on-screen push, and even open up career possibilities outside of the company?

The answer should probably be yes for most of these sweethearts. I had a subscription to Playboy and I can tell you it's about as erotic and revealing as Vanity Fair (which also has nude pictures). You flip through, read the dirty jokes, an article with Bill Maher, and then you kind of just shrug at the nudie pics which are all photoshopped with fake lighting and details to the point where it doesn't even look like a real nude fake woman, it looks like a good painting of a nude fake woman, and altogether it's about as bone-inducing as if you drew it yourself.

Trish and Lita didn't need to pose, because they were good wrestlers. Some other girls probably should have gone for it. I'm still annoyed that my favorite diva, Victoria, is retired since I always though they would eventually give another long healthy title run to the only woman on their roster who could actually wrestle. And maybe, when I think about it, maybe she should've done Playboy, but I don't think they ever asked her, because she's not a 120 pound waif.

**sigh** at any rate, no, WWE does not pressure them, but the pressure is there, and they should probably give in and do it, since most have them have already done morally-questionable things to get where they got anyway (not that I have a problem with that. I respect Quid Pro Quo)

I personally don't find Maria attractive, and would not imagine taking time out of my day to look at nude pictures of her. But she did end up getting a super push out of it and probably a decent chunk of change. Of course, now she's not really doing anything, but that's because she's talentless and has a little pig nose; but she did have a little push and she's still with the company; I'd be hard-pressed to think she'd still have a job today if it weren't for the playboy thing.

Some guy said something about Kelly Kelly being as good as Trish or Lita in 2 years which is funny. Because being as good as Trish or Lita is still light years away from Victoria, and I think he's wrong anyway. Kelly Kelly is absolutely useless in the ring like most divas, and that's the eventual main idea. Not to be sexist, but women wrestling just isn't comparable (except Victoria, who's awesome) to men, at least right now. They look like a bunch of rag dolls each over-selling the other, and they botch more moves than they successfully pull off. Why? Because most of them were trained to be pretty, and a few of them have succeeded at that. But they aren't athletes, they just watch their carb intake. Trish succeeded because she was at least involved with physical fitness, Lita succeeded because she was actually interested lucha libre style wrestling. Victoria succeeded because she actually trained to be a wrestler, a standard that all wrestlers (male or female) should be held to. Kelly Kelly should pose in Playboy before she gets lost in the realm of marginally attractive, dolled-up blondes that are becoming increasingly a dime-a-dozen, because her wrestling abilities will only get her so far and the next Diva who takes the shoot will blast past her.

 

[supergav67]

Im kinda going by what Charlie Haas,s missus & former Diva Miss Angelina (apologies if I got her name wrong) said on being axed from the roster,"I guess I woulda lasted a bit longer had I not turned down Playboy but it was my decision & how I woulda lived with myself for doing it." Then again ,A reason Chyna left WWE was,according to HeR "I get paid more for doing TwO Playboy shoots than I ever got from ,WWE,," (funny,she doesnt do so many now)
Its fair to say ,a really gorgeous Diva,champ or not ,IS expected to say yes or ordered to do Playboy. but WWE have always had to tread that fine line of guys beating each other up & girls getting their kit orf while saying with a straight face "Its a family show" yeah,& that family,,is the McMahons,,,!

 

[SuperKick36]

Honestly, I don't think WWE should be having ANY of their divas pose for playboy ever again. Why?

Isn't WWE trying to make their show more "family oriented" and more "appropriate" for kids?

I'm sorry, but playboy is NOT appropriate for kids, and it is NOT family oriented.

... I'm not sayin I don't dig playboy though... don't get me wrong. Hot chix are cool w/ me any time of the day/night.

As far as the "pressure" part goes, a few people have stated already that WWE could get sued hardcore for doing that. Why? Number one reason is probably because of sexual harrassment. The pressure comes from the attention and money as far as I know.

 

[OIL]

As far as the "pressure" part goes, a few people have stated already that WWE could get sued hardcore for doing that. Why? Number one reason is probably because of sexual harrassment. The pressure comes from the attention and money as far as I know.

I'm not litterally saying Vince is going to force them to do it. That's impossible. What i'm saying is that what comes with posing for Playboy is a huge push and a match at WrestleMania (The 25th one this year, Divas would do anything to be a part of that). Don't forget the WrestleMania bonus too. So with all of that, if for example, Kelly Kelly turned down the chance, all of that could be put onto a Diva willing to get her kit off, and then Kelly Kelly will be pushed down the card.

 

[I_Like_All_Wrestling]

Kelly Kelly was a model who has already done pictures that equate to her wearing little more than bit of floss. She also posted pics of herself online pissing in a sink at a party. It looks like she doesn't embarass easily and has no problem showing off her body. I'm sure she'd make more money doing playboy and being hyped on WWE than she did being a model in nothing I can recall. Now I don't know her personally, but it seems she has no problem doing it, so I'm sure they're not "pressuring" her into it.

 

[Bernkastel]

I’ve been mostly observing this thread, but I think it’s time to put in my two cents. I’d say that the WWE does pressure some of the women into doing Playboy, for some it’s a last hurrah, for others it’s the equivalent of winning the IC title when they’ve already held the world title multiple times. Kelly has never stated before that she doesn’t want to pose, which is probably why the WWE has approached her. The WWE has never approached Melina because she’s stated that she doesn’t want to pose. If Kelly had stated before that she didn’t want to do it, the WWE would just simply pass her up and get someone like Maryse or Mickie James to do it instead.

In the end, Kelly Kelly is just another Diva.

Just like Beth Phoenix, Candice, and Mickie James

Melina is the current Women's Champion, and yet she's never been pressured into it.

Because she’s stated that she doesn’t want to do it. The WWE has other women that can take her place.

Trish Stratus, Lita & Victoria carried the division for years and weren't pressured into it.

They didn’t want to pose either

Victoria spent most her career being carried by the division

Yeah.. she was over, shocker shocker, because she had a gimmick that required her to be a 19 yr. old stripper, more or less. Lol

Living in 2006 much? Kelly has improved since then, she doesn’t suck anymore.

Kelly Kelly isn't a great wrestler

By whose standards? Yours? I’d bet you probably don’t even know how a wrestler is defined as being good or not. I can tell you now that Kelly is a good wrestler, she’s not the best on the roster, but at the same time she’s better than most.

she's mainly there for everyone to look at

yeah, so are the rest of the divas

and this would be her opportunity to get a push right around WrestleMania season and if she doesn't take this opportunity, she might not get a push like the pushes that usually come around WrestleMania for the women who take the playboy deal.

Kelly doesn’t need the “Wrestlemania Push” partly because she’s not going to be fired anytime soon. I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if Kelly gets the belt later in the year. I’d bet she takes the belt from whomever takes the belt from Melina.

The Diva's like Trish Stratus and Lita did not have to worry about not posing for Playboy because they have something that Kelly Kelly doesn't have, great wrestling ability so they wouldn't have needed Playboy to get pushed.

Wrong, Trish and Lita stated that they didn’t want to pose for Playboy, hence they were never asked to or forced to. Kelly as never stated either or, so the WWE has approached her to pose, because she’s popular and they know she’ll sell copies.

What is this “great wrestling ability” that Trish and Lita had that Kelly doesn’t? Saying that Trish and Lita could wrestle and Kelly can’t is just as stupid as saying that HBK can wrestle but John Cena can’t.

Im kinda going by what Charlie Haas,s missus & former Diva Miss Angelina (apologies if I got her name wrong) said on being axed from the roster,"I guess I woulda lasted a bit longer had I not turned down Playboy but it was my decision & how I woulda lived with myself for doing it."

I wouldn’t trust anything that Jackie Gayda says, she was one of the worst female wrestlers that the WWE has ever had. Even if she had done Playboy, Jackie still would have been fired rather quickly.

If the WWE supposedly cut Angel Williams from the roster because she wasn’t pretty enough for on camera, they certainly wouldn’t have approached her for Playboy.

Now as for being pressured...no they arent, but...doing playboy will "help" their career. but then again...doing playboy always ends up killing your career...lets see shall we?

Doing Playboy doesn’t always kill the career of the girl that does it. Playboy was never meant to be a stepping stone, the girls that were chosen previously had some exposure from the company, whether it be they were former champions, did promotional work for the company, or from the Diva search.

Sable...fired---but many will say she quit. all she has going for her now is being knocked up by lesnar

Sable was massively over the first time she posed. She did quit, but she later came back, posed again and was later released after her storyline ended.

Torrie..fired---same for torrie, but didnt do much of anything once she did playboy and had back surgery..for what i dont know

Torrie wasn’t that great at doing anything else but playboy.

Pfft… there were plenty of guys on the roster that were working with serious injuries. A bad back wouldn’t have stopped her if she was serious about becoming a wrestler.

Christy...fired---budget cuts...whatever.

Her release has always puzzled me; I felt her release was a mistake.

Chyna...fired---yeah we all know what happened there

Yeah, and it had nothing to do with the fact that she posed for Playboy.

Maria...prolly will be fired soon. she hasnt done shit since she posed

Wouldn’t be surprised, but I hope she doesn’t. She’s the job girl on Smackdown, and with Victoria gone, if Maria leaves then that position will be passed to Nattie and I don’t want to see that.

Candice...has done nothing either. sure she got her hands on the title, but then what? since being an accident on two legs i see her being fired real soon.

Now this is truly LOL worthy. Candice is currently one of the best wrestlers on the roster; I have her in my top 5 out of the whole roster.

Calling her accident prone is unfair considering that a good majority of the other divas have been injured as well. When Candice posed, she had already surpassed the “wrestlemania push” as she earned the title the old fashioned way, by putting on entertaining matches, and she still does that today.

Ashley...didnt do shit after posing, then left for some dumb ass reason..she was on the chopping block anyway

Ashley sucked, plain and simple

 

[tyler.durden]

i think a diva has to at least make it to a certain level of popularity before playboy or wwe will approach them. it's more like a performance award, if you will, when you become a successful diva. so i don't see that the wwe will 'punish' or 'demote' any diva just for turning down the offer, as many in the thread had already brought up. in the end, playboy does more publicity for the diva than it does for the wwe.

 

[E7]

Its not punishment. Basically, the divas are models to begin with. I mean, when was the last time Candiace, before last week, wrestled? When was the last time Katie lea wrestled? They are glorified models who can wrestle.

Therefore, when playboy comes around, it is seen as a good thing. Why? It gives them a nice push on TV and they get to model as well, and show off what they've worked hard to achieve(assuming all of the diva's all clean).

They may be pressured, but i think they like the pressure in a way IMO