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Not every WWE Superstar gets famous with their original name. While there was a period of time (like the Ruthless Aggression era) where a lot of wrestlers used their real names in WWE, that hasn't been the trend for most of the company's history.
Names can make a big difference in WWE, especially when it comes to fan perception. Sometimes, WWE Superstars aren't given a great name right off the bat, but as you will see in many cases on this list, a name change was accompanied by a drastic change in personality. It led to their WWE careers taking off in a big way, and it's hard to see them reaching the success they did had they not changed their names.
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#7. The Rock - From golden boy to an all-time WWE great
At Survivor Series 1996, a young 24-year old Samoan made his in-ring debut for WWE. His name was Rocky Maivia, and the commentators instantly put him over as a future leader, including the likes of Vince McMahon and future WWE Hall of Famer Sunny.
In his in-ring debut for WWE, Rocky Maivia was the sole survivor of his team, even eliminating the likes of Goldust to make a big impact. He was cheered, and the rocket was strapped to his back from the get-go.
WWE faced a problem not even half a year into his run - one that would be compared to Roman Reigns in the future. Given that WWE booked Maivia as a white-meat babyface, there was nothing about his character that fans could get behind. The "Die, Rocky Die!" chants started flowing in, and soon after, he suffered an injury that kept him out for months.
The Rock himself revealed that Vince McMahon gave him two options - to be shoved down WWE fans' throat and continue to get rejected as a babyface, or turn heel, and give them a reason to hate him.
Rocky Maivia's return in the summer of 1997 saw him quietly change his name to "The Rock", and along with it, a change in personality, as he aligned with The Nation of Domination. He acknowledged the hatred that fans had thrown at him earlier that year, and his personality and character saw rapid progression.
It was only a matter of time before the WWE Superstar was the best on the microphone, and his charisma saw him stand side-by-side with 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin in becoming the face of WWE.
It was only 15 months after The Rock's heel turn that he won his first WWE Championship. Although his run on top was short, the change from Rocky Maivia to The Rock turned him from a Superstar into a megastar in WWE and eventually, the mainstream world of Hollywood.
#6. JBL - A change in name and a record-breaking WWE title reign
Around eight or nine years into his WWE run, JBL was officially done with Farooq and The APA. While he had competed outside of APA for a while as well, it largely defined his WWE career. That was, of course, until 2004, when his spot on SmackDown was given a lot of importance. Brock Lesnar had left WWE, Kurt Angle and Big Show were injured - leaving a major vacancy in the "top heel" spot.
Bradshaw had a major gimmick change and became a wealthy Texan Cowboy named "JBL" (John Bradshaw Layfield). His success was almost instant, and he dethroned Eddie Guerrero to win his one and only WWE Championship.
But it was a significant reign, as he was able to hold onto it from June 2004 until April 2005. He set a record and had the longest WWE title reign in a decade at that point. It was a worthwhile reign that started due to a name change, circumstance, as well as Bradshaw stepping up his game.
John Cena received his coronation at WrestleMania 21 by defeating JBL, and it would kickstart his decade-long run as the face of WWE. This name change was a historically significant one when you look back at it.
#5. Triple H - WWE's "Connecticut Blueblood" became The Game
When it comes to accolades in WWE, very few superstars are as decorated as The Game Triple H. With 14 World Championship victories and seven WrestleMania main events, not many Superstars have had the impact of tenure that Triple H has.
It wasn't smooth sailing from the start in WWE for Triple H, however. He debuted as "Hunter Hearst Helmsley", and his career needed a while to take off. Helmsley was part of the most powerful WWE backstage group The Kliq - featuring Shawn Michaels, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, and Sean Waltman.
It's hard to deny that the influence got him to a higher level in WWE, but it seemed to pay off. Helmsley was reportedly set to win the 1996 King of the Ring tournament, but the infamous "curtain call" moment in Madison Square Garden saw The Kliq members break character after their match in a farewell to Scott Hall and Kevin Nash - who were leaving WWE for WCW.
'Stone Cold' Steve Austin won instead, and that was where he cut the "Austin 3:16" promo that eventually skyrocketed his career. Triple H won the KOTR tournament a year later, and as he joined DX, his character, name, and personality changed.
Triple H became "The Game", and from there on, it was an upward trajectory. The rest is history.
#4. Bray Wyatt - Husky Harris turned out to be a future WWE Champion
Husky Harris' run on the WWE main roster didn't last too long, thankfully. After Randy Orton punted him back to WWE developmental territory, he took time, but in 2012, he developed a new character known as "Bray Wyatt" - a supernatural-like character, but similar to a cult figure.
This turned out to be a decision so crucial, that it may have saved his WWE career. It was right around then that FCW was being rebranded to NXT - which went from a WWE Game Show to a developmental territory.
He didn't spend too long in NXT, and by 2013, he was all ready for his re-debut on the WWE main roster. His character enamored fans, and he constantly found himself in important spots, facing top-tier WWE Superstars.
The only problem was that WWE built him up, only to use him as a stepping stone to other names that they wanted to push. Despite this, Bray Wyatt has re-invented himself and been relevant despite inconsistent booking from WWE.
He is now 'The Fiend', and is a 3-time World Champion - having one reign with the WWE title and two reigns with the Universal Championship. Changing his name truly set his WWE career off.
#3. Kane - From a dentist to one of the most fierce characters in WWE history
Glenn Jacobs needed a long time to get his WWE career kickstarted. He debuted as Unabomb but eventually turned into Dr. Isaac Yankem - the evil dentist. He even feuded with multi-time WWE Champion Bret Hart and faced him at SummerSlam in 1995.
The next step was for WWE to turn him into the fake Diesel after Kevin Nash left the company in 1996. He was accompanied by fake Razor Ramon, played by Rick Bognar.
Naturally, this had a bad reception from WWE fans, and it was only in 1997 when WWE began a slow-burning build to his debut as Kane. At Bad Blood 1997, the main event saw the first-ever (and arguably best-ever) Hell in a Cell match between Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker - with the winner facing Bret Hart for the WWE Championship.
While The Undertaker seemed close to victory, Paul Bearer came out with the debuting Kane, who ripped open the steel cage and decimated his half-brother, allowing Michaels to pick up the win.
Many fans believe that Kane's debut was the greatest in WWE history, and it's hard to argue against it. Changing his name from Unabomb to Isaac Yankem to Diesel and eventually, Kane was a great payoff that allowed his career in WWE to take off.
#2. Batista - From Deacon to WWE legend
Batista's main roster debut in WWE was an underwhelming one - appearing as Reverend D-Von's sidekick on SmackDown, and going by the name "Deacon Batista".
They were given TV time, but Batista eventually turned on D-Von and aligned with Ric Flair. This led to him joining Evolution, where his name was shortened to just "Batista".
Batista's WWE career would change forever. He became the powerhouse of Evolution, and although Randy Orton was the Superstar who WWE wanted to have the biggest rise from Evolution, it was ultimately Batista. With WWE having finished the Randy Orton turn in the summer of 2004, it resulted in an unintentionally organic build to a Triple H-Batista feud.
By early 2005, Batista broke out as one of the hottest Superstars in WWE, and his Royal Rumble win that year would lead to his first WrestleMania main event, where he dethroned Triple H to win the World Heavyweight title. While it wasn't the conclusion of the Evolution storyline, it was a definitive moment that saw Batista skyrocket to the top of WWE.
#1. 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin
'Stone Cold' Steve Austin's WWE career could have gone so differently. As you may know, his WWE debut came in early 1996, and he was known as 'The Ringmaster' and was handed the Million Dollar Championship by Ted Dibiase. However, The Ringmaster idea was never going to work, and Austin reportedly asked WWE for a change himself.
Some of the names suggested to him by WWE were Otto Von Ruthless, Ice Dagger, Fang McFrost, and Chilli McFreeze. Thankfully, Steve Austin knew better, and it was the 'Stone Cold' name that he adopted early into his run.
We mentioned earlier how the "curtain call" moment in Madison Square Garden had an impact on the course of WWE history. It was in mid-1996 that Austin's career took off, as WWE chose to make him the King of the Ring winner instead of the originally-planned Triple H.
It was later that year that Austin feuded with Bret Hart, leading to a match at Survivor Series 1996. Their WrestleMania 13 match was a true turning point, where 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin began a babyface run. The name change skyrocketed him into becoming the largest-drawing superstar in WWE/pro wrestling history up to that point. It's hard to imagine an Attitude Era without 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin wreaking havoc in WWE.
