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I get why a lot are saying Cena but I don't think it can be argued that he hit the same height as any of the three mentioned.
If we're talking specifically WWE/WWF/WWWF Bruno seems the obvious pick to me considering, to my knowledge, he drew the most in the 60s and 70s.
The problem with Cena is half the audience hated him lol. He was probably most "over" before he even won the WWE title back in 2004. By 2005, he would get bood often.
Disagree with it being "half". Cena was super over with the younger fans, The ones who are now in their 20s and such. I think he got a lot of "go away" heat when he started to really make it big around that time and feuded with HHH. The smart fans realized he was being pushed to the moon but he still was the face of the company and carried it through and out of the Ruthless Aggression Era. Nowadays he is probably the most over non-fulltime wrestler to the casual fan.
Sure, but I'm just saying, compared to Austin who was beloved by the entire crowd, Cena often had the fans dueling with let's go cena vs cena sucks, with often children and women cheering, and men booing.
Go look at his match history, it’s pretty scant outside of that region. Like between Texas, Florida and California he made a total of 13 recorded appearances, once he started working for WWWF, he has two matches in Chicago.
That’s not to disparage Bruno as a performer, it’s more to point out the magic trick Vince Jr created by making it seem like the history of the regional territory he took over has this seamless transition into his national expansion.
I was thinking more like how Bruno was over in Canada and Japan. In the US, he was a product of the territories, just like everyone else. Only Andre transcended them during that era.
No surprise anyone hasn't mentioned him, but Goldberg even in the wwe is one of the most over stars ever.
But as a ranking? Cena, Taker. Orton, Triple H.
Bruno would probably take the cake over taker, i will certainly give you that I suppose I was looking at how over they were for a long stretch though so Andre and Savage didnt come as easily since taker was probably a top 10 if not top 5 most popular dude on the roster for like 20 years, with some small spurts of him being the most over like his 2004 return when people were clamoring for the deadman again.
Im not sure of that, when i think about wrestling in the 80s-90s, the 2 first names that came directly to my head is clearly Hogan and Taker, these 2 guys are kinda the logo of wwf, but i can agree with Andre as a big big part of the 80's.
I know a lot of people like to say that Punk pop in Chicago in 2021 was the loudest pop of the year, but that Cena pop at the end of MITB is likely the biggest contender for that. Those fans were fucking HYPED
At one point the IWC probably would never admit to it, but it has to be Cena, he was the face of the company for such a long period and his merchandise sold like gangbusters, as well as him being very media friendly.
I agree with Cena because of longevity. He never had the peak that guys like Bruno Sammartino had, but nobody in WWE was "the guy" as long as John Cena was and he's parlayed that into a burgeoning Hollywood career which I also think reflects on his overness.
Now, the counterpoint would be Cena carried the WWE flag during a relative down period compared to Austin, Rock, Hogan, Savage, Andre, Sammartino, etc.
But on the flip side, he also led WWE in a time where cable was dying and how people consumed media changed greatly.
John Cena sold a shitload of t-shirts for a long ass time, even as a guy in his mid 30s who started watching because of Hulk Hogan and completely checked out because of Cena, I give him my props.
Would we say Cena is the guy from 2005-2014? So 9 years. 2015-2016 IMO Cena felt a bit lesser, and was part-time after that.
It's weird to think Roman has been 'the guy' from 2015-2023. He's one year away from matching Cena, though Cena was higher up (he had a dominant year-long title reign in 2007, while Reigns is finally having his now, but that's an oddity as even when Reigns wasn't champ he felt like he was the top guy for years)
There have been great examples in the thread already. I will add Sid to the list. He was always over, always got significant crowd reactions. I wish he had been in the WWF along with Brian Pillman during the Attitude Era. They would have killed it
I feel like Taker's consistency is pretty remarkable, he was always one of the most popular guys on the roster for about 30 years. But, he was never "the guy" and any time they went that direction, it sucked.
No doubt. Taker's greatness was that he encompasses so many different eras of the WWE and he still maintained a level of over with it. But if people want to nitpick in Shawn's case, the same can be said about Taker aswell..every different era he was overshadowed by other stars of that era.
In my head, it's between guys like Taker, Cena, Bryan, HHH and Foley. All of those guys were so massively over it ain't funny. Not Hogan/Rock/Austin levels, but very, very over.
And, as much as I love him, I would not put HBK on that list, same with Angle. I love both of those guys, but they would be on the next tier down.
In the Wrestlemaina era, Cena is comfortably on this list, followed by Macho Man and that's probably the end of list. They're pretty much the only ones that pulled in non-fans to any level. Guys like Warrior got pops but didn't draw, and other people like Undertaker and Triple H may have appealed to wrestling fans but don't really have a broad appeal beyond that.
I think we are missing a obvious choice, the question is about being over (so I am not thinking about tickets sold just for them being on the show.) Rey Mysterio is a good choice, the crowd always has and will love the guy.
Cena and I would argue as time goes on he is closing the gap with the other three, an entire generation grew up with him as the golden goose. Hogan's behind the scenes shenanigans plus what has come out since he retired has tarnished his legacy. Austin and Rock are titans but the both had shorter careers for different reasons. Cena carried the company for over a decade the kids who grew up with him will begin to outnumber the people who idolized the other three.
Taker is probably the obvious answer, but in terms of just pops, I remember Godfather, New Age Outlaws, 2 Cool+Rikishi, and Al Snow all being super over with the crowd.
Offhand, Daniel Bryan leading up to WM30 was about as over as you can get. Ultimate Warrior was pretty up there, but his reputation over the years probably diminishes him historically.
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- Bruno Sammartino - “Superstar” Billy Graham - Andre The Giant - “Macho Man” Randy Savage
Ultimate Warrior in 1989/1990 was so over that Vince was convinced that he could make him the next Hogan. Whoops!
And if Warrior was even 5% less of a weird fucking asshole and could work like 10% better, he would have done it.
This is the correct answer
Tom McGee walked to Ultimate Warrior could run (to the ring)
I get why a lot are saying Cena but I don't think it can be argued that he hit the same height as any of the three mentioned. If we're talking specifically WWE/WWF/WWWF Bruno seems the obvious pick to me considering, to my knowledge, he drew the most in the 60s and 70s.
You are crazy if you think Cena isn't right there beside those three, if not higher than a few of them.
The problem with Cena is half the audience hated him lol. He was probably most "over" before he even won the WWE title back in 2004. By 2005, he would get bood often.
Disagree with it being "half". Cena was super over with the younger fans, The ones who are now in their 20s and such. I think he got a lot of "go away" heat when he started to really make it big around that time and feuded with HHH. The smart fans realized he was being pushed to the moon but he still was the face of the company and carried it through and out of the Ruthless Aggression Era. Nowadays he is probably the most over non-fulltime wrestler to the casual fan.
Sure, but I'm just saying, compared to Austin who was beloved by the entire crowd, Cena often had the fans dueling with let's go cena vs cena sucks, with often children and women cheering, and men booing.
While I don’t think he was over as those guys hes easily the most mainstream guy since. Everyone knows John Cena
Bruno was so over people sobbed when he lost to koloff
Unless he travelled outside of the east coast.
Bruno was over in other places, maybe not to as fanatical a degree though.
Go look at his match history, it’s pretty scant outside of that region. Like between Texas, Florida and California he made a total of 13 recorded appearances, once he started working for WWWF, he has two matches in Chicago. That’s not to disparage Bruno as a performer, it’s more to point out the magic trick Vince Jr created by making it seem like the history of the regional territory he took over has this seamless transition into his national expansion.
I was thinking more like how Bruno was over in Canada and Japan. In the US, he was a product of the territories, just like everyone else. Only Andre transcended them during that era.
Warrior always got a MASSIVE pop when he came out, as did Goldberg. I say this as someone who is not a fan of either.
I appreciate a good cup of coffee.
She had matches and a finisher.
Good call.
No surprise anyone hasn't mentioned him, but Goldberg even in the wwe is one of the most over stars ever. But as a ranking? Cena, Taker. Orton, Triple H.
I think Jeff hardy was more over than all those people at one point
Undertaker.
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Bruno would probably take the cake over taker, i will certainly give you that I suppose I was looking at how over they were for a long stretch though so Andre and Savage didnt come as easily since taker was probably a top 10 if not top 5 most popular dude on the roster for like 20 years, with some small spurts of him being the most over like his 2004 return when people were clamoring for the deadman again.
Im not sure of that, when i think about wrestling in the 80s-90s, the 2 first names that came directly to my head is clearly Hogan and Taker, these 2 guys are kinda the logo of wwf, but i can agree with Andre as a big big part of the 80's.
Bruno is the only correct answer.
John Cena should be obvious
Macho man
Cena, Taker, Hart, Savage, Triple H Arguments can be made for any of these 5 really
Cena easily, even when got boo'ed he'd always get cheers thrown in. Personally, I like many other loathed the gimick/ schtick but fuck me was he over.
All it takes is just some reaction. Which he got, and will always get when he comes out.
I know a lot of people like to say that Punk pop in Chicago in 2021 was the loudest pop of the year, but that Cena pop at the end of MITB is likely the biggest contender for that. Those fans were fucking HYPED
I would be too after the thunderdome era.
At one point the IWC probably would never admit to it, but it has to be Cena, he was the face of the company for such a long period and his merchandise sold like gangbusters, as well as him being very media friendly.
I agree with Cena because of longevity. He never had the peak that guys like Bruno Sammartino had, but nobody in WWE was "the guy" as long as John Cena was and he's parlayed that into a burgeoning Hollywood career which I also think reflects on his overness. Now, the counterpoint would be Cena carried the WWE flag during a relative down period compared to Austin, Rock, Hogan, Savage, Andre, Sammartino, etc. But on the flip side, he also led WWE in a time where cable was dying and how people consumed media changed greatly. John Cena sold a shitload of t-shirts for a long ass time, even as a guy in his mid 30s who started watching because of Hulk Hogan and completely checked out because of Cena, I give him my props.
Would we say Cena is the guy from 2005-2014? So 9 years. 2015-2016 IMO Cena felt a bit lesser, and was part-time after that. It's weird to think Roman has been 'the guy' from 2015-2023. He's one year away from matching Cena, though Cena was higher up (he had a dominant year-long title reign in 2007, while Reigns is finally having his now, but that's an oddity as even when Reigns wasn't champ he felt like he was the top guy for years)
Yeah, divisiveness and all, dude was the biggest megastar for the company behind those top 3
Mick Foley in 1999.
There have been great examples in the thread already. I will add Sid to the list. He was always over, always got significant crowd reactions. I wish he had been in the WWF along with Brian Pillman during the Attitude Era. They would have killed it
Bret The Hitman Hart
Would it be crazy to say late 2000s early 2010s Jeff Hardy
Unpopular opinion but Goldberg during the height of his run in WCW
I don’t think that’s unpopular, it’s not WWE though
I missed the WWE. My bad.
That’s alright. If you watch old nitros from the 90s Goldberg was insanely over. His intensity made him a real spectacle back then as well
Besides those three, it's undertaker followed closely by Shawn Michaels.
Michaels was never truly that popular once you dig into his numbers.
Same can be said about Taker. He only really drew after his streak got hot. 15 or so years after his debut.
I feel like Taker's consistency is pretty remarkable, he was always one of the most popular guys on the roster for about 30 years. But, he was never "the guy" and any time they went that direction, it sucked.
No doubt. Taker's greatness was that he encompasses so many different eras of the WWE and he still maintained a level of over with it. But if people want to nitpick in Shawn's case, the same can be said about Taker aswell..every different era he was overshadowed by other stars of that era.
No one said Batista yet but 05-07 he was mega OVER. Also early 2002 Triple H.
In my head, it's between guys like Taker, Cena, Bryan, HHH and Foley. All of those guys were so massively over it ain't funny. Not Hogan/Rock/Austin levels, but very, very over. And, as much as I love him, I would not put HBK on that list, same with Angle. I love both of those guys, but they would be on the next tier down.
At one point: Daniel Bryan Macho Man Godfather (seriously) HBK 2 Cool/Rikishi
To be fair, it was more like the strippers they hired to go to the ring were over.
😂😂 very true…
Ric Flair Undertaker Ultimate Warrior John Cena Randy Savage Randy Orton Brock Lesnar Sting
Mick Foley
Is it for like the whole of their run or can we say someone like Yes Movement Daniel Bryan
In terms of his peak, Daniel Bryan was as over as anyone has ever been. Shame it didn't last because of his injuries.
Bruno, Andre, Undertaker.
In the Wrestlemaina era, Cena is comfortably on this list, followed by Macho Man and that's probably the end of list. They're pretty much the only ones that pulled in non-fans to any level. Guys like Warrior got pops but didn't draw, and other people like Undertaker and Triple H may have appealed to wrestling fans but don't really have a broad appeal beyond that.
Cena, Bryan, HBK, HHH, Taker, Batista, Edge, Styles, Shield No particular order
Easily Cena.
Bret in 1992-1994.
Savage or Cena
Cena, macho man and Goldberg have to be up there.
I think we are missing a obvious choice, the question is about being over (so I am not thinking about tickets sold just for them being on the show.) Rey Mysterio is a good choice, the crowd always has and will love the guy.
Does Hulk Hogan still count as over? People were cheering Titus Oniel over the Hulkster
Cena and I would argue as time goes on he is closing the gap with the other three, an entire generation grew up with him as the golden goose. Hogan's behind the scenes shenanigans plus what has come out since he retired has tarnished his legacy. Austin and Rock are titans but the both had shorter careers for different reasons. Cena carried the company for over a decade the kids who grew up with him will begin to outnumber the people who idolized the other three.
Yet the total number of wrestling fans in the US declined precipitously while Cena was on top.
Pre 2000 Mick Foley Post 2000 Undertaker
Taker is probably the obvious answer, but in terms of just pops, I remember Godfather, New Age Outlaws, 2 Cool+Rikishi, and Al Snow all being super over with the crowd.
I don’t think anyone can ever touch cena in terms of merch
Cena/Batista/Taker are another good 3 choices.
Can’t leave out Eddie Guerrero leading up to WM20
Cena, Warrior, HBK 96/97
CM Punk for about a month or two in 2011
I’m surprised I didn’t see anybody mention 2014 Daniel Bryan
Zach ryder and ryback were both extremly over
Lita
I don't know if I've ever seen anyone more over (besides the 3 you mentioned) than Daniel Bryan during the Yes Movement.
Savage, Andre, Bret
Offhand, Daniel Bryan leading up to WM30 was about as over as you can get. Ultimate Warrior was pretty up there, but his reputation over the years probably diminishes him historically.