Wade Barrett recently shared his thoughts on the dynamic between heroic (babyface) and villainous (heel) characters in WWE.
Currently a commentator in WWE, Barrett enjoyed a successful career as a heel wrestler during his in-ring days. Under his ‘Bad News Barrett’ persona, he developed a unique connection with the WWE Universe, earning cheers despite being positioned as a villain.
In a recent interview with AceOdds, Barrett was asked about heel wrestlers who excite fans. The former Intercontinental Champion expressed that an \"exciting heel\" is a contradiction, as heels are intended to provoke negative reactions. Once they start receiving cheers, they cease to be heels. Here’s how he explained it:
\"Exciting heel to me is an oxymoron. The problem with exciting heels is that people jump up on their feet and start cheering the second they walk out, at which point they\'re no longer heels. They\'re getting cheered. They\'re the good guy now. They\'re the babyface. We\'ve seen that over the years with several people. We saw it with The Rock in the late nineties. I\'m an old-school fan and remember sitting at home watching The Rock trying his best to come out and insult towns and audiences, do the most heinous things, and people would explode because they were so excited about seeing The Rock and being entertained by him.\
Barrett also pointed to WWE United States Champion LA Knight as an example of how heels can transition into babyfaces. He noted that Knight\'s natural charisma and fan reactions led to his shift in alignment:
\"I think more recently, if you look at an LA Knight, I think the original game plan was that LA Knight was going to be an antagonist. He was going to be mean to people, but again, he was so exciting and everyone got electrified and buzzed the second he was on the screen. Hey, you aren’t the heel anymore, pal. Those are two classic examples of the pitfalls of being an exciting heel, which they both turned into their benefit, of course. They sell a lot of T-shirts as a result. But yeah, exciting heels don\'t last long. They become exciting babyfaces instead.\
It has been nearly a decade since Barrett last competed in the ring. Recently, the WWE Raw commentator revealed his interest in having one more match and even named Drew McIntyre as a potential opponent.
