Professional wrestling offers something for everyone. Whether you’re tuning in for the incredible athleticism, the pomp and pageantry, or the outlandish storylines, one thing ties it all together: the characters portrayed by the talented performers.
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At its core, professional wrestling is often about good guys versus bad guys. But one of the most exciting things that can happen is when someone switches sides, called a turn. When a good guy, called a babyface or face, turns to become a bad guy, called a heel, almost nothing generates as big a reaction. With that in mind, you can read below to find the greatest heel turns in all of WWE history.
10
The Big Show
Again And Again
Okay, so, none of The Big Show’s many, many heel turns were actually all that great. Or any of his equally numerous face turns, for that matter. That said, he simply has to get an honorable mention for the sheer volume of them they underwent in his WWE career.
It’s believed he performed an astonishing 18 distinct heel turns across his career. It became silly, then exhausting, and like so many things in wrestling, worked its way back around to becoming a beloved trope. We love you, Big Show, but we just can’t ever trust you.
9
Dominik Mysterio
Dirty Dom Doubled Down
You would be forgiven for assuming that if Dominik Mysterio were in the conversation about the best heel turns, it would be turning on his legendary father, Rey Mysterio. In actual fact, it’s his other heel turn that is more impressive.
At SummerSlam 2024, Dirty Dom pulled off something very hard to do. He made a distinct heel turn while already an actively disliked heel. By turning on Rhea Ripley to start a relationship with Liv Morgan, Dirty Dom dastardly did the heel double dip.
8
Mark Henry
The Salmon Jacket Incident
Mark Henry faking his retirement was possibly the best segment of his career. His character was a heel, but announcing his retirement got the crowd behind him and switched him to an out-of-kayfabe babyface.
That was until he attacked John Cena, revealing that he had no immediate plans to leave at all, cementing himself back in the heel category. Would it be as memorable without that distinctive salmon-pink jacket? You can be the judge.
7
The New Day
New Day Sucks
The best heel turns are unexpected, and while everyone knew something was coming for The New Day, almost no one predicted how it would go down. It was heavily suggested that Xavier Woods might turn heel, which left the obvious twist to be that it would be Kofi Kingston.
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The shock was that both men would turn heel, using their resentment of Big E as fuel. Angry at him for being absent while recovering from a broken neck, they instantly became so reviled that not even other heels on the roster wanted to be seen with them.
6
Shawn Michaels
Rockin’ Out
A great heel turn stands on its own, but a heel turn that launches a career is something special. That was the case with Shawn Michaels turning on his tag team partner Marty Jannety, hitting him with the Sweet Chin Music before throwing him through a window.
Although The Rockers had been a solid act, this was the true beginning of Michaels and his incredible solo career. It was also what spawned the nickname The Heartbreak Kid, coined by Mr. Perfect Curt Henning, one that has stuck with HBK to this day.
5
Seth Rollins
He Sold Out And Bought In
Seth Rollins turning on his Shield brothers was a shock. After all, the night before, the trio had defeated Evolution, securing their place as an unstoppable force in the company. So when Seth jumped ship to join Triple H in the authority by beating Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns down, no one saw it coming.
His justification was that it was the best move for his career, and history has proven that this was actually true for all three of the Hounds of Justice. Seth and Roman have gone on to have historic WWE careers, while Dean Ambrose is one of the top stars of rival company AEW.
4
Stone Cold Steve Austin
The Corporate Rattlesnake
The payoff for Steve Austin turning heel and joining forces with vile Vince McMahon wasn’t great, and it led to many fans losing interest in both the product and the character, but it remains unquestionably historic anyway.
Stone Cold selling out and joining forces with his greatest enemy was and still is an interesting idea; it just wasn’t executed well and came at the wrong time. They say, however, that anything you keep talking about in professional wrestling is a good thing, and Stone Cold selling out certainly qualifies.
3
Bret Hart
Excellence Executed
Bret Hart turning heel in his match against Steve Austin at WrestleMania 13 is considered a perfect moment. The buildup led to it elegantly, and both men performed their parts without a flaw, with the match itself being considered one of the best ever.
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Although this heel turn wouldn’t last long before the Montreal Screwjob changed the industry forever, it remains justifiably iconic. When talking about WrestleMania matches, this one might just be the best there is, the best there was, the best there ever will be.
2
Hulk Hogan
Hogan Goes Hollywood
By the time it happened, a Hulk Hogan heel turn was overdue. The manner in which it came about, though, was truly spectacular. Joining WCW and forming the NWO with Scott Hall and Kevin Nash is considered one of the industry’s biggest changing points.
Hulk Hogan has lost almost all of the popularity he once held, but that doesn’t change the fact that Hulk Hogan becoming Hollywood Hogan is a pivotal piece of wrestling history and a huge part of what made WCW so exciting for so long.
Although this happened in WCW, WWE now owns WCW and the two companies are generally considered to have a shared history when considering kayfabe.
1
John Cena
Sold His Soul
They did it. They actually did it. John Cena turning heel, in his retirement year when fans were finally universally cheering him, is nothing short of unbelievable. WWE had teased him turning before, but that it actually happened felt like a fever dream.
Describing the magnitude of this to people who aren’t wrestling fans is impossible. It would take another wrestler more than two decades to build the consistent run as a babyface that Cena had. If anything, the heel turn was a testament to his incredible career as the poster boy babyface.
Siding with his old enemy The Rock, beating down the beloved Cody Rhodes, and being within ten feet of Travis Scott, it’s hard to think of what else John Cena could have done to make this a bigger heel turn. John Cena, we finally see you for who you really are.
