Sting will wrap up his legendary career at AEW Revolution, and many fans are watching to see how he ends everything in the ring. He will also likely wear his black and white face paint for the last time in a pro wrestling ring, which will be an epic moment. The gimmick itself is also a huge point of discussion.
While speaking to Bleacher Report, Sting claimed that he didn’t directly take his gimmick from The Crow. He said that it wasn’t until later, when people started calling him Crow Sting, that he actually picked up on the similarity.
Sting’s Recollection of Inspiration
The Icon looked back at that time of his career, when the Crow gimmick was created, “I do remember those movies, and I was dubbed that name, Crow Sting, and I took from many many different people that influenced me,” Sting said. “From the band Kiss to even Rocky Horror Picture Show. That was like a cult movie in California. You know, Batman. So many people influenced me over the years.”
Sting had many inspirations, and it wasn’t just The Crow, because KISS and Batman were already around.
“I suppose possibly The Crow character may have had some influence but it was nothing that I ever really thought about until everybody said ‘He’s Crow Sting.’ and I went ‘Oh, okay. Yeah, I see that.’ I saw the movie I think. I don’t think I’ve seen the whole movie from beginning to end. I’ve just seen bits and pieces of it over the years, but I remember when it first came out.”When I was developing this Crow character, I wasn’t thinking about the movie at all. I was thinking about Kiss, I was thinking about Rocky Horror, I was thinking about Batman. And there’s others that influenced me over the years.””But it’s just weird, that Crow thing, of all things Crow, why wouldn’t that be something on the forefront? I don’t know”
Conflicting Story To Sting’s Inspiration
In a resurfaced interview with Scott Hall, he told the story of suggesting that Sting wear white face paint and adopt a darker character. Hall then claimed that he asked Sting if he had seen The Crow.
Eric Bischoff chimed in during this clip, and he said how Sting couldn’t get enough of this Crow character. He was all in for the change, and although it was a massive alteration, it certainly made pro wrestling history.
The story of how Sting changed his gimmick to "Crow Sting" and the feud with Hulk Hogan pic.twitter.com/kOHkti4CIz
— Wrestling Pics & Clips (@WrestleClips) March 3, 2024
Sting’s Final Match
Sting will wrap up his legendary career during AEW Revolution. He will team with Darby Allin to take on The Young Bucks with the AEW World Tag Team Titles on the line. His match may not main event the show, but it is still a huge attraction for the pay-per-view event.
The direct inspiration of Sting’s gimmick may be a matter of debate at this time, but there is no arguing that Sting’s contributions to the pro wrestling world help change history and inspire generations after him.
Thank you, Sting.
