WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley says his mid-late 90’s Mankind character became an unexpected symbol of acceptance for fans who felt like outsiders, despite being his most challenging persona to portray.
Speaking with Denise Salcedo of Instinct Culture at Comic Con Revolution, Foley shared that while many fans remember his legendary matches, others found personal meaning in his characters:
“My favorite part about being here is just hearing what connected with fans. For some people was this match, legendary match with the Undertaker, but in some cases it’s someone telling me they kind of felt out of place and then they saw in mankind a kindred spirit and realized it’s okay to be a little bit different.”
Foley achieved worldwide notoriety as Cactus Jack before arriving in the World Wrestling Federation (April 1996), but Vince McMahon had a different vision for his presentation.
The creation of Mankind pushed Foley to dark psychological places, requiring intense method acting techniques seldom seen in professional wrestling.
“Mankind was the toughest because it was a really dark character in 1996. It was really dark and it was tough for me to go to a dark place. I mean, literally, I would go to the boiler room to try to get into the character of mankind,” Foley explained.
This revelation contrasted with his other personas, as he noted, “Dude Love was the easiest because it’s just me being a little nerdier than I am in real life.”
Mankind was initially a vehicle to introduce Foley as a viable opponent for The Undertaker, but even he must have been surprised at the direction it ultimately took. 30 years later, he’s still hearing from fans who felt an unlikely connection with the tortured character.