Bray Wyatt should continue performing as himself on WWE television instead of The Fiend, according to Bully Ray.
Wyatt is currently involved in a feud with LA Knight on SmackDown. The return of the former WWE Champion's masked alter-ego has been teased several times in recent weeks. However, the popular character has not yet officially been revived.
Bully Ray, formerly known as Bubba Ray Dudley in WWE, explained on Busted Open podcast why Wyatt is more appealing to watch than The Fiend. He also compared the situation to Finn Balor's sporadic appearances as The Demon persona:
"I'd rather just see Bray Wyatt back than an incarnation of The Fiend, and maybe we're gonna get Bray like we got Finn and we're not gonna rely on the gimmicky things, like Finn hasn't unleashed The Demon in a long time," Bully Ray said. "We're getting Finn Balor. Hopefully we just stick with Bray Wyatt, with bits and pieces of The Fiend being thrown back in."
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Wyatt has not competed in a match since he performed as The Fiend in a losing effort against Randy Orton at WrestleMania 37 last year.
Why Bully Ray has doubts about Bray Wyatt's The Fiend character
Although The Fiend is hugely popular with fans, some have criticized the horror-themed persona for making other superstars look weak. Seth Rollins, for example, said in October that it was "tough figuring out how to tell a good wrestling story with that character."
Like Rollins, Bully Ray also has concerns about WWE's possible booking of The Fiend moving forward:
"It's one of those characters that it's so great that sometimes it backs itself and books itself into a corner because would the character do this? If the character is this maniacal madman, how can anything possibly hurt him?"
Wyatt captured the Universal Championship as The Fiend in 2019 and 2020. The character received huge cheers at Extreme Rules 2022 in October when a puppet version of Wyatt's creation appeared at ringside.
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