10 wrestlers who secretly hated their gimmicks

Cody Rhodes in his Stardust persona he used near the end of his WWE career.

#5 "Lady's Man" Dean Malenko

Even Dean doesn't buy his gimmick as a Lady's man.

Let it be said, without irony or controversy, that Dean Malenko was the most technically gifted wrestler of all time.

The man of a thousand holds was just that. If there is a wrestling move in existence, Dean knows it, and seven different ways to counter it. From mat wrestling, to submissions, to high flying moves and top rope superplexes, Dean Malenko had one of the best movesets of all time in pro wrestling.

He garnered title reigns in WCW, especially the cruiserweight division, which Dean also booked and filled with some of the best talent in the world. He also enjoyed reigns as the United States and tag team champion.

When he joined the WWE, walking out on his contract with WCW despite its lucrative nature, Vince McMahon believed he needed 'spicing up.' He was saddled with a 'lady's man' gimmick that mostly saw him behave in a harassing, creepy way toward Lita.

Malenko wound up retiring rather than using the gimmick, and now works as a road agent. An ignoble end to a great career.

Edited by Nishant Jayaram