Happy Halloween, wrestling fans! While there are countless horror movies to watch in order to get your fix, there are plenty of scary moments in WWE history that will send chills down your spine. More than most, Bray Wyatt has been featured in a number of them, and here’s a look at the top three.
Whole World In His Hands
Not long after he arrived on the main roster, Bray Wyatt feuded with John Cena, showing that, at least at the time, WWE viewed him as a potential top-level star. Cena beat Wyatt at WrestleMania 30, but they met again in a Steel Cage Match at Extreme Rules 2014. Here, Wyatt delivered one of the creepiest moments yet. In a chilling display, he used Cena’s legion of young fans against him. In the closing stages of the match, several of them came to ringside and said Wyatt’s catchphrase, “He’s got the whole world in his hands,” with a grotesquely distorted voice. One of them stared Cena in the eyes, and the distraction helped Wyatt drop the former world champion with a Sister Abigail. He then left the ring to win the bout.
Wyatt hugged the young boy, and thee Wyatt Family led him away, showcasing its power as a cult. At other stages of his career, Wyatt was a monster movie monster, but here, the monstrosity came in his ability to brainwash a child.
The Fiend Arrives And Snaps Finn Balor’s Neck
Before The Fiend arrived, Bray Wyatt had already displayed his remarkable creativity throughout his career. Questionable booking decisions stalled his run as a top star, but after he took some time away, he came back as an entirely new character in 2019. Weeks of vignettes as the dark Mr. Rogers-like character led to the introduction of The Fiend, a nightmarish monster, at SummerSlam 2019. At the pay-per-view, Wyatt debuted his new entrance for the character, which included a haunting new theme song and, most frighteningly, a lantern that resembled his disembodied head. This entrance became a highlight of WWE TV for the duration of The Fiend’s run on the main roster, as it generated an unmatched sense of both dread and excitement in the crowd.
But the horror was only beginning; Wyatt’s first victim, for lack of a better word, was Finn Balor. The former WWE Universal Champion tried to fight, but he was no match for the monster. Wyatt changed up his moveset to match the new character, and he showcased his most scary maneuver in this first match; he snapped Balor’s neck, and the move looked like it could take even the most fierce competitor out of action. The Fiend won this bout, and he continued to terrorize WWE for well over another year until he met his match.
Burn Baby Burn
This one’s another two-for-one special, but for good reason. 2020 was a strange time in WWE history; the pandemic turned the wrestling world itself upside down, as fans were unable to attend shows due to the COVID-19 pandemic. WWE reacted by initially holding tapings at its Performance Center before shifting to the ThunderDome, an arena that allowed fans to attend events virtually. The lack of a live crowd enabled WWE to get creative in a variety of ways; being able to pre-tape and use special effects opened up many possibilities; it’s hard to forget Baron Corbin throwing Rey Mysterio off the roof of WWE headquarters or Seth Rollins taking Mysterio’s eye out. (Poor Rey.)
The Fiend could easily be considered the most apparent example of this flexibility; from the Swamp Fight at Extreme Rules 2020 to the countless ways he demonstrated his powers, Bray Wyatt somewhat remains the symbol of this era. His character’s usage of these effects remains divisive; some fans enjoyed it, while others thought it was ridiculous. Either way, he created a number of memorable moments. One of them stands above the rest, and it came at WWE TLC 2020.
There, Randy Orton battled The Fiend in a Firefly Inferno Match. As the name suggests, the two men tried to burn each other alive, and in the end, “The Viper” prevailed when he pushed Wyatt into the flames, setting his back on fire. Wyatt, who was still on fire, tried to attack Orton, but the former WWE Champion dropped him with an RKO. He proceeded to light The Fiend on fire, and the image of the monster’s body burning to a crisp was one of the most haunting images fans had seen on WWE in quite some time. The scene was right out of a Friday the 13th movie, when the would-be victims try to destroy the killer and seemingly do so, only for him to come back with a vengeance.
Of course, that’s what happened with The Fiend as well. He was kept off WWE TV until March, when he returned at WWE Fastlane 2021. There, he appeared with a new, charred mask and gear to match, looking like a horror movie monster who has come back to life. He attacked Orton and helped Alexa Bliss score a stunning pinfall victory over the veteran. From there, the rivalry trailed off until it reached its dissatisfying conclusion at WrestleMania 37; Orton beat Wyatt again, ending the reign of The Fiend once and for all. But for a time, The Fiend was WWE’s most terrifying monster, and the combination of him being burned alive and coming back to life were ripped right out of a scary movie.
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