5 Superstars who left WWE for unusual reasons

#3 Sgt. Slaughter chose GI Joe over WWE

Sgt. Slaughter

Sgt. Slaughter's popularity grew in the 80s, coincidentally with the growth of the GI Joe comic book series. Slaughter left WWE in the mid-80s after getting an offer to be a GI Joe. WWE Chairman Vince McMahon was not keen on it as WWE were in talks with another company.

The WWE Hall of Famer said that he left the company after telling Vince McMahon that he "can't always be a GI Joe".

"I said, ‘Hey Vince, guess what? I’m gonna be GI Joe, the All American hero.’ He said, ‘Well, that’s great Sarge; but, I can’t let you go. I said, ‘Why not?’ He said, ‘Because I’ve got another toy company: LJN. We’re gonna be doing cartoons and we’re gonna be doing this and that. If you want to go, you can go; but, you can’t be here with us. It would be a conflict of interest. I said, ‘Oh my God, you burst my bubble.’ I went home dejected not knowing what to do, so that became kind of a bad situation between Vince and I. At the time, I gave him my notice. He said, ‘You’re not leaving. You can’t leave.’ I said, ‘I’ve got to leave. I’ve got to go.’ I said, ‘I can always be a wrestler, Vince, but I can’t always be a GI Joe."

He eventually returned to the company a few years down the line and faced Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania VII in the main event.