As you may recall, The Undertaker ditched his Deadman persona to become the American Badass in 2000. He kept that persona for five years and would make his way to the ring on a motorbike, but many fans continued holding out hope for his return as the Phenom.
Well, that took place at WrestleMania 20 in 2004, but Bruce Pritchard has now revealed that The Undertaker initially had no interest in resurrecting that gimmick.
"Mark Calaway hated the idea. Absolutely hated the idea of coming back as the Dead Man because he thought with the American Badass character, it was multi-dimensional and he wasn’t, uh, doing the head snaps and everything. He could work and go out and have a different style of match. And he felt that if he came back as the Dead Man, that he would have to go back into the Dead Man persona in the ring."
Pritchard went on to say that WWE promised The Undertaker that if he played the Deadman at the Showcase of the Immortals, he could incorporate his updated in-ring style into the character. Despite that, he still felt like he'd taken a step back but clearly became comfortable enough with the idea as time passed.
Do you miss the American Badass? As always, let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below.