#5 The Rock - 2011
The Rock is one of the greatest performers of all-time. When his acting career began to come priority, WWE allowed his contract to expire in late 2004, assuming he wouldn't be interested in signing another.
The Rock later revealed he was actually offended by this and wanted to reach some kind of a deal.
Despite that, after appearing on RAW in August 2004, it would be another six and a half years before we saw him on the Red Brand again. The Great One made his long-awaited return to WWE in February 2011, being revealed as the guest host of WrestleMania 27.
He immediately planted seeds for his future WrestleMania encounter with John Cena, and would make occasional appearances throughout the year, including returning to in-ring competition at Survivor Series 2011.
The Rock wrestled six matches between 2011 and 2016, and has often teased returning again. His comeback will mostly be remembered for his incredible shoot segments with John Cena and their first encounter at WrestleMania 28, as well as winning the WWE Championship for the eight time in 2013.