5 Times WWE acknowledged released superstars on TV recently 

WWE has released several superstars over the past two years. So the company should be forgiven for forgetting to take out their ex-employees in video packages.

Interestingly, the company tries its best to remove as many references to stars that they no longer own the rights to. However, several names have fallen through the gaps, leading WWE Universe to spot them on TV.

The following list looks at just five times WWE has inadvertently shown a released superstar as part of their programming in recent years.

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#5. Drew McIntyre references Braun Strowman on WWE RAW

Drew McIntyre, Bobby Lashley, and Braun Strowman collided for the WWE Championship just weeks before the former Universal Champion was released from WWE.

While the release came as a huge surprise, the company moved the feud between Lashley and McIntyre into Hell in a Cell.

As part of the contract signing ahead of their WWE Championship match, McIntyre referenced Braun Strowman as part of his promo. As seen in the video above, McIntyre states: "I want a match where nobody else can lose on my behalf."

Lashley pinned Strowman at Backlash, and McIntyre had nothing else to do. The latter got his rematch at Hell in a Cell, which he lost.

Strowman has now sat out his non-compete clause and was part of EC3's Free The Narrative show a few weeks ago. The Monster Among Men has been linked to IMPACT Wrestling and AEW in recent weeks but is yet to confirm his next step in the wrestling world.

#4. Dean Ambrose is shown as part of a Shield package on WWE TV

Dean Ambrose was one of the biggest stars in WWE at one time, before he left the company in 2019.

Since Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns are still a huge part of the company and The Shield was a big chunk of their career, WWE finds it hard not to include Ambrose in storylines.

Most recently, Ambrose was dragged into the feud between John Cena and Roman Reigns when Cena noted that it was Reigns who ran him out of WWE.

Later the same night, a Shield video was played on SmackDown. Since the company could not edit the star out of the clips, Ambrose was included in it.

Ambrose joined WWE's rival AEW back in 2019 and has been outspoken about his time as part of the company. The former WWE Champion now performs for All Elite Wrestling under the ring name Jon Moxley.

#3. Roman Reigns name drops Daniel Bryan on WWE SmackDown

Roman Reigns has been on quite the run as Universal Champion on WWE TV over the past year. He has remained undefeated since his return at SummerSlam last year.

The Tribal Chief defeated Brock Lesnar at Crown Jewel on Thursday night and cut a promo on SmackDown. He listed the stars he had to "smash" in recent months, and surprisingly Daniel Bryan was one of the names.

Bryan opted to leave WWE earlier this year after losing a Loser leaves WWE match to Roman Reigns. The former World Champion is now performing for All Elite Wrestling and was considered a massive signing for the brand.

Given that Bryan departed WWE just a few months ago, it was a surprise that the company allowed Roman Reigns to use his name as part of the promo.

#2. Luke Harper is mentioned on WWE TV

Luke Harper was a huge part of the WWE family for several years before requesting his release in December 2019. He then became known as Brodie Lee in All Elite Wrestling.

Despite moving on to wrestle for the rivals, Harper remained a well-loved star within WWE. After his tragic passing in December 2020, several superstars paid tribute to him on TV.

This included Alexa Bliss using his "Yeah Yeah Yeah" slogan on Alexa's Playground and Big E giving his former friend a shoutout as part of a backstage segment.

Xavier Woods used Luke Harper's clothesline as part of his match later in the night. The Fiend made his return at WrestleMania in April, referencing his fallen friend several times.

The promotion didn't stop any stars from paying tribute to Harper, as he was close to these wrestlers before his untimely death.

#1. The Fiend is seen at WWE Crown Jewel

Bray Wyatt was released from WWE earlier this year. His character 'The Fiend' has become one of the most popular stars in the company.

Considering Wyatt's popularity, WWE found it hard to erase him. As part of the recent Crown Jewel pay-per-view, a lengthy video package showed the history between Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar.

As part of this video package, The Fiend was seen several times. Reigns won the Universal title from him. Former superstar Daniel Bryan also showed up.

Both men were also named in the above tweet from the company, looking back at Reigns' incredible run as Universal Champion on SmackDown.