On the July 15, 2019, edition of Monday Night Raw, the WWE Universe was introduced to one of the company’s most creepy yet captivating characters. Just over an hour into the show, Finn Balor defeated Samoa Joe, but the night was going to get much worse for the Irish Superstar. After the match, Balor would become the first victim of ‘The Fiend’ a demonic new side to Bray Wyatt that had been teased for months. Today, on the fifth anniversary of the character’s arrival, we look back on what brought the Fiend to TV.

Before The Fiend

In the six years on WWE’s main roster before the arrival of The Fiend, Bray Wyatt had been one of the most consistently captivating Superstars. In 2016, Wyatt captured the SmackDown Tag Team Titles and followed up by becoming WWE Champion the following year.

More important though than titles, was how Wyatt was able to draw in a crowd with his mastery of character work. From John Cena to The Undertaker to Roman Reigns, it seemed nobody could escape Wyatt’s mind games as he played on potential weaknesses in some of WWE’s biggest stars. This work rightly earned Wyatt a ‘cult-like’ following who were eager to see what was next for him.

LA Knight Wishes He Wasn’t Bray Wyatt’s Last Match

Teasing The Fiend

After vanishing from our screens in early 2019, Wyatt returned in April of that year with a character far different than what we’d seen. Gone was the Max Cady-inspired swamp-dweller, now replaced with an excitable sweater-donned Bray who looked like more like Mr. Rogers than an ‘Eater of Worlds.’

Introducing the WWE Universe to the Firefly Fun House was a brilliant stroke by Wyatt as it added some much-appreciated lore to a character fans had already learned so much (and yet not enough) about. The idea of a children’s presenter with a twisted side proved especially chilling for any parents watching and delivered a sense of dread never before seen in WWE.

The Fiend Arrives

In the episodes of the Firefly Fun House, the jovial Wyatt teased that somebody was coming and that he wouldn’t be able to stop them. That force proved to be the Fiend who from the moment fans saw him, captivated audiences. With a striking design crafted by horror effects staple Jason Baker, the Fiend’s chilling look was another success story to Bray’s latest creation.

The Fiend was able to handle himself in the ring, as seen with his two reigns as WWE Universal Champion, but the character’s best work arguably came outside the squared circle. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced WWE to think outside the box without crowds, and Wyatt would again show his creative chops in the cinematic Firefly Fun House match. The WrestleMania 36 showdown with John Cena saw both participants craft a rich story that saw The Fiend best the man he failed to defeat at the event six years earlier.

Braun Strowman: ‘I Feel Bray Wyatt In My Life Every Single Day’

The Fiend Today

In August 2023, Bray Wyatt passed away at the tragically young age of 36 and WWE has, for all intents and purposes, retired The Fiend character. Nevertheless, the creative vision of Windham Rotunda can still be felt today with the recently introduced Wyatt Sicks. Like all great creative minds, Rotunda’s legacy has surpassed his own mortal life, and the WWE Universe will always appreciate (and fear) The Fiend.

Two new statues of the late Bray Wyatt have been unveiled at the WWE World convention taking place in Philadelphia, PA ahead of WWE WrestleMania 40. 

Bray Wyatt tragically passed away in August of 2023 after being pulled from programming earlier that year. The three-time WWE World Champion was 36 years old and tributes have poured in for Wyatt ever since. 

At WWE World, WWE unveiled two statues of the late wrestler. One depicts Wyatt from his 2022 return to WWE, holding a lantern and a mask. The second depicts Wyatt during his time as ‘The Fiend’ which was a hit with audiences from 2019 until his WWE release in 2021. It also features a Fiend-inspired lantern. 

The Return of Uncle Howdy

At WWE World, a panel was hosted highlighting the life and career of Wyatt. The panel included some of the people who knew Bray best, including Big E, Natalya, Seth Rollins, Charlotte Flair, The Undertaker, his widow JoJo Offerman, and Wyatt’s brother Bo Dallas, among others. 

The panel proved to be an emotional event for the guests and the fans and there was a tease at the very end of the festivities. On a screen, a video was shown, teasing the return of Uncle Howdy. 

https://twitter.com/TraceDarabaris/status/1776639627064963279

Dallas played Uncle Howdy on WWE TV shortly after Wyatt’s return to the promotion in 2022. It’s unclear when or how WWE will reintroduce the Howdy character to TV. During the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony, Bo and his sister Mika paid tribute to Wyatt during their induction speech for the US Express. 

It seems Bray Wyatt may have unfinished business with Alexa Bliss.

Wyatt has quite the history with Bliss, from his time as “The Fiend.” Both superstars were in a storyline together from July 2020 to WrestleMania 37 on April 11, 2021. WWE seemingly ended the relationship between Wyatt and Bliss after she betrayed him at WrestleMania 37. However, Wyatt has teased that his story with Bliss is far from over.

Bliss is being followed by the mysterious “Uncle Howdy,” who, after the Royal Rumble on Jan. 28, is presumably working with Wyatt. In a press conference after this year’s Royal Rumble, Wyatt talked about his relationship with Bliss and what will come from this storyline.

What’s Next For Bray Wyatt and Alexa Bliss?

Based on Wyatt’s comments, Bliss will be working with him again. As of now, Uncle Howdy is the only person following her. However, that could change after this year’s Royal Rumble. Uncle Howdy seemed to be working with Wyatt after he aided Wyatt’s attack on LA Knight.

The mysterious character also appeared in a video after Bliss’s loss to Raw Women’s Champion Bianca Belair to tease her. The video showed images of Bliss during the time she worked with Wyatt, and Uncle Howdy repeatedly said, “Do you feel in charge.”

It’s unclear where WWE is going with this storyline between Uncle Howdy, Wyatt, and Bliss. However, Wyatt believes that wherever the story is headed, it will be something fans will remember.

WWE has given us a new mystery.

For the last few weeks the company has been playing Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit” at house shows and during commercial breaks of television tapings. This has prompted fans to turn on their cell-phone flashlights similar to how they use to for former WWE superstar Bray Wyatt, with many believing that the song is signaling the Eater of Worlds inevitable return. A recent fan theory added more fuel to this speculation, but now a bigger tease has been released online, one that may indicate what is to come.

Artist Kyle A. Scarborough, who has had his work showcased in WWE, AEW, NJPW, IMPACT, NOAH, and non-wrestling related markets, took to his personal Twitter today and shared an original image of what appears to be…a White Rabbit. Hidden under Scarborough’s code reads the words “Feed Your Head,” which is the final line in the Jefferson Airplane song. WWE Fans in particular remember Scarborough as he designed the mask for Wyatt’s alter ego, The Fiend.

Wyatt was released by WWE back in July of 2021, one of the more shocking cuts the company made considering Wyatt’s popularity and ability to move merchandise. He had been paired with Alexa Bliss at that time, who herself, dropped a White Rabbit hint on Monday’s edition of Raw. You can read about that here.

For more, visit our main thread taking a deep dive into WWE’s White Rabbit mystery.

Former WWE and current ROH star Mike Bennett recently spoke to Metro. He talked about a number of things and also revealed some interesting nixed plans for a Fiend faction in WWE.

Bray Wyatt made his main roster WWE debut as the leader of the Wyatt Family in 2013. He spent a good amount of his time as the leader of the group before introducing The Fiend persona in 2019.

However, during the interview, Bennett revealed that Mr. McMahon wanted The Fiend to have a faction as well and the former WWE star almost played a part in it:

“Early on when Bray Wyatt turned into The Fiend, Vince was always high on having Bray lead a group for some reason — he always wanted him to lead a group, We were about a week away from making it happen where me and Eric Young were gonna be part of Bray Wyatt’s group.

We were gonna actually be — they were gonna bring to life the puppets. Each puppet was gonna represent an actual person.” revealed Mike Bennett, “I don’t remember, there were talks that I was gonna be Sister Abigail and Eric Young was gonna be a buzzard.”

• Possible Return Date For Bray Wyatt

The current ROH star revealed that the company had come close to materializing these plans on TV. Though like many other things in WWE, these plans also got canceled last minute.

Bray Wyatt has been away from WWE programming since WrestleMania 37. One can only imagine how different his character would have been with a group. You can check out Mike Bennett’s full interview at this link.

WWE SmackDown announcer Corey Graves recently discussed the WWE Draft. The Draft took place just over a week ago and saw some of WWE’s biggest Superstars make the move to either to Blue or Red brand.

On the WWE After The Bell Podcast, Corey Graves would outline some of the moves that he was and wasn’t happy about from the Draft.

Corey Graves on The WWE Draft

“Off the top my head? I’m bummed to see The Fiend and all the madness that follows him head to Monday Night Raw” Corey Graves began on the podcast. “But of course it makes for some fresh new matchups.”

Graves would then make a prediction about a major angle for The Fiend Bray Wyatt on RAW. Corey made it clear that he wants one of the commentary team on RAW to leave the desk and get back in the ring.

“I’m putting it out in the universe, here first on After The Bell. I want Samoa Joe to get out from behind the commentary table and fight The Fiend. There’s my big bold prediction. Maybe it’ll happen by the end of 2020? I have a bad habit of making it worse.”

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Corey Graves would also lament the loss of AJ Styles from Friday nights, but also discuss the move of Seth Rollins to FOX Network. “AJ Styles also headed back to Monday nights…but my man, one of my favourites, one of my closest friends Seth Rollins has arrived on Friday night SmackDown, to bring the greater good, your way. Keep your eyes peeled, I’m sure it’s gonna be gud as Booker T so often says.”

Would you like to see The Fiend vs Samoa Joe? Do you think that AJ Styles will work on RAW and Seth Rollins will be a major asset for SmackDown? Let us know in the comments

Former WWE manager/announcer Jim Cornette recently weighed in on the Firefly Fun House match from WrestleMania 36 this past weekend. In an absolute shock to nobody, Cornette was not a fan of the match. Here’s exactly what the leader of the ‘Cult of Cornette’ had to say on the Drive Thru podcast.

Jim Cornette on Cena vs Wyatt

“What the fuck?” Jim Cornette began. “Just what in the tee total, french fried, t*tty f*ck was that? I like John Cena and I’ve never said anything bad about John Cena. I assume John Cena is gone from the WWE and will never come back? And the only reason he participated in this I would think, is because he’d never be seen again by this audience.”

The overall reaction to the match from fans appears to be mixed. Some have praised WWE for creating a storyline driven experience, helping to get Wyatt’s character back into the mix. However, Cornette would disagree:

“F*cking Lewis Carroll has Alice down the rabbit hole.”

Jim Cornette

“All right, how do I make notes on this? He [Cena] came to the ring, then Bray’s in the funhouse. Then there he goes through the door because the puppet tells him to. F*cking Lewis Carroll has Alice down the rabbit hole. They came up with new material that sucked donkey a**. I wrote the following: ‘this is the end of wrestling, why am I wasting my time watching this?'”

Boneyard vs Firefly Funhouse

Cornette would then finish by comparing the Firefly Funhouse match to the Boneyard Match from the night before. “This isn’t even a cool movie fight scene” Cornette stated. “This is just stupid, nonsensical. Even in the movie fight scene they weren’t obviously acting silly and doing schtick with each other. I’ve never met Bray Wyatt, but I’m disappointed in John Cena.”

It is not currently known where or if this storyline will be ongoing. John Cena has recently been on Twitter and Instagram, so the idea of an ‘alternate dimension’ may be off the cards. Not sure that Corny would enjoy that much either…

What did you think of the Firefly Funhouse match? Let us know in the comments

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Co-host of the 83 Weeks podcast Eric Bischoff recently discussed ‘The Fiend’ Bray Wyatt on the show. Bischoff referred to the recent Super Showdown event where Wyatt lost his Universal Championship against Bill Goldberg; calling it ‘shocking.’ Eric Bischoff would discuss how The Fiend was a massive merchandise mover during his short time in WWE. Also how he believed that WWE were building a new ‘Undertaker-esque’ character at the time.

Bischoff at The Helm of SmackDown

Bischoff was the Executive Director of the SmackDown brand back in 2019. Although The Fiend wasn’t actually on the blue brand around the time that Bischoff was in charge; there’s a good chance that ‘Easy E’ would’ve been privy to that sort of merchandising information at the time.

“I found that shocking particularly, the way they did it [and] as quickly as they did it” Bischoff began, talking about how Goldberg would get the win against a previously dominant in-ring presence in The Fiend. “When I was in WWE, I don’t know what the situation is now. But The Fiend’s merchandise, they couldn’t produce it fast enough” Bischoff revealed.

The Fiend as a new Undertaker?

Bischoff elaborated further, saying “it appeared to me at least, that The Fiend was going to be one of those characters that could be an Undertaker esque type character over the long term.”

Bray Wyatt is currently scheduled to face John Cena at WrestleMania 36 in Tampa. The creative direction for The Fiend is currently uncertain. Wyatt has been alluding to the character’s mentality on social media. With Wyatt making allusions to the fact that Goldberg wasn’t “part of his journey.” And that John Cena at WrestleMania is “where it all began.”

It will be interesting to see how WWE play off the feud heading into WrestleMania season.

Do you think that The Fiend could be the next Undertaker? Let us know in the comments

RAW Commentator Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler recently held a fan “Q&A” session on his Jerry Lawler Show podcast. One of the more intriguing queries came from a fan asking who Lawler would face in WWE today if he had the chance. Lawler’s initial response was The Miz, as he felt their chemistry from their bouts in 2011 would be easy to replicate.

“Miz would be excellent to work with,” Jerry Lawler began. Lawler then described how Bray Wyatt put it out there that he wanted a match against the ‘King of Memphis.’ “And you know, after we did the little thing a while back on Monday Night Raw (August 2019), before I was back doing commentary. I just came on for a guest appearance. Bray Wyatt came to me afterwards and he said ‘King I would love to work with you down in Memphis.'”

Jerry Lawler vs The Fiend?

It is extremely unlikely that the bout would ever happen in WWE, as Lawler suffered from a heart attack during a live episode of RAW back in 2013. The situation was critical, with Lawler reportedly being clinically dead for almost five minutes before being resuscitated. There have been numerous reports and Lawler himself has said that he cannot get physical whilst on WWE television. Jerry Lawler does however still wrestle periodically on independent cards across the United States.

Lawler made it clear that he would relish the idea of facing ‘The Fiend’ in his home territory of Memphis. “I just thought back then, what matches I could have had. Because he [Wyatt] was the perfect kind of villain that we would bring in. The big scary monster type. That’s the kind of people that I love to work with, and have matches with.”

Jerry Lawler finished by saying “I would love to have a have a match with Bray Wyatt or The Fiend either way.”

WWE Hall of Famer Booker T has addressed “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt’s recent Universal Championship victory. Wyatt defeated former champion Seth Rollins in the main event of WWE’s recent event Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia.

Speaking on the Reality of Wrestling podcast, Booker T spoke about what comes next for “The Fiend.”

“I said it on the kickoff show as we’re getting ready to go into a new era. Bray Wyatt is going to be not only the conqueror of the WWE, going from The Undertaker and then moving onto John Cena, and now The Fiend has arrived,” Booker said.

He continued, “Where does The Fiend go? He can’t just keep popping up and cutting the lights on and off. We need to put the rocket on him and send him straight to the moon and let everyone else chase. We need to find someone who can beat The Fiend.”

“You’re The Guy”

Booker T shared how anybody in the locker room could become “the guy” to step up next now that “The Fiend” has become established at the top of SmackDown’s roster. For him, however, he believes the next logical choice is Daniel Bryan.

“Everybody in the locker room is now in a position to put themselves in a place where anything can happen for them,” he stated. “They can get a phone call that says, ‘You’re the guy.’ Humberto Carrillo, he might be the guy. Somebody right now is in prime position to step up and have the fans look at them in a totally different way.”

“[Bryan] would have been the guy to actually been a fiend right now just because the fans would believe in him so much. We need somebody that the fans are gonna believe in 100 percent to get behind. There’s not a whole lot of guys I can think of that I could go to right now to put against The Fiend. I might have to bring The Undertaker back to make this thing work. You never know.”

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription. 

‘The Fiend’ Bray Wyatt did not appear on WWE programming this week apart from his firefly fun house segment, despite the fact that he had been teasing a confrontation with Stone Cold Steve Austin from last few days.

However, he did make a live appearance at Madison Square Garden and Wyatt wrestled a dark match after this week’s episode of SmackDown Live.

Wyatt faced the team of his real-life brother and former NXT Champion Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel collectively known as the B Team in a 2 on 1 handicap match.

Bray squashed the former Raw Team Champions in this bout and fans noted that the match only lasted about as long as the entrance and exit of the Fiend. Below are some photos and videos of the fight:

Bray Wyatt made his in-ring debut as the Fiend during the SummerSlam PPV where he defeated the former Universal Champion Finn Balor in a one on one match.

Since then, the former WWE Champion has continued the trend of sporadic appearances and it’s said that the officials want people to feel that he can appear anywhere at anytime.

There is no word yet on who is going to be the next victim of Bray Wyatt and we would have to wait and see who ends up facing the former Champion next.

Braun Strowman had some high praise for his former Wyatt Family leader, Bray Wyatt, and his new character The Fiend.

Speaking on Sam Roberts’ podcast, Notsam Wrestling, Strowman spoke about his friendship with Wyatt, calling him “one of my closest friends inside and outside of the business.” He divulged that Bray got into a “weird place” as he struggled with his WWE direction before eventually landing on the Firefly Funhouse and Fiend gimmick.

“[…] he literally went into the drawing board and started from scratch. We went for a while without even talking because he went so deep into this character; he shut himself out from the world. I remember watching the very first episode of the Firefly Funhouse and was thinking, ‘What the hell is this? Bray, what are you doing?’ But the more I watched, I couldn’t turn away from it. It was so intriguing what he was doing, and then they brought ‘The Fiend’ out and I was like, ‘Alright, it’s unbelievable.'”

He continued, “Bray’s mind – he is so talented in this industry, phenomenal in the ring, probably the best damn guy on the microphone going, let’s be for real,” Braun said. “There’s a lot of guys that can talk, but when you give Bray Wyatt free reign on the microphone, it’s hard to keep up with him. Just his mind for this business and for entertainment [is impressive]. He thought all about this character on his own, and it’s just like, it blows my mind. But at the same time, it’s just so good to have him back.”

“He’s My Brother”

Strowman called Wyatt a locker room leader who helps lift morale as “one of the top guys in the company.” He reflected on how Wyatt mentored him when he first debuted with the Wyatt Family, recalling how he would drive him around and the two would talk non-stop about the business. 

“He taught me the business,” Strowman said. “When I came in, that was it. I drove Bray around and he talked and taught me the business. He taught me how to book hotels, he taught me where to eat, how to do everything on the road, because I had no idea. I will forever be indebted to that man. He’s my brother.”

Braun Strowman will perform double duty at WWE’s September event Clash of Champions. He will not only defend the RAW Tag Team Championships with partner Seth Rollins, but he will also face Rollins in a match for the Universal Championship. Reports indicate that The Fiend may be next for whoever emerges victorious.

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions. 

The physical appearance of Bray Wyatt’s Fiend persona still has wrestling fans buzzing since its debut at SummerSlam.

The unsettling mask would be accompanied that night with a disturbing lantern modelled on Wyatt’s head.

With its mouth stretched and elongated to hold the light, and its eyes sewn shut, the lantern created an undeniably powerful statement, thanks to the work by Tom Savini Studios.

Speaking with GameSpot, Savini Studios’ Jason Baker—who is credited as the supervisor of Wyatt’s mask construction—discussed their relationship with WWE, as well as the collaboration process with Wyatt.

Baker explained that Savini Studios and WWE have a relationship stretching back almost ten years, naming Erik Rowan, Luke Harper, Kallisto, and Stephanie McMahon as some of the Superstars they have previously worked with.

When it came to the Fiend, however, Baker asserts that Bray deserves all the credit.

“It’s all Bray’s brainchild,” he said. “He had these ideas, and we did some concept art, but it wasn’t really hitting home with Bray. So he got a really, really good sketch artist named Kyle Scarborough, out of St Louis, to do some concept art for him. Those sketches were awesome, and we took those and brought them to life.”

“They’re good blueprints, but we put our own stamp on the mask as well,” continues Baker. “It comes down to sculpting, logistics, and comfort. If the guy’s going to wear this while beating the living piss out of people, he should be able to see out of it and make sure it’s strapped to his head.”

Baker teased that, despite the Firefly Funhouse and Fiend work that has consumed his life, the WWE Universe “haven’t seen anything yet.”

‘The Fiend’ Bray Wyatt finally made his debut on the SummerSlam PPV after months of buildup and defeated the former World Champion Finn Balor in a singles bout.

His debut was highly praised by the fans and it was considered to be one of the highlights of the PPV, so it was quite surprising that Wyatt was kept away from Television afterward.

He did not appear on Raw or SmackDown Live episode following the PPV and since WWE also shortened his entrance on their YouTube channel, a lot of people wondered if his character was considered too scary for television.

Ryan Satin of the Pro Wrestling Sheet provided some update on the situation. He revealed that the reason why The Fiend was not shown on WWE Programming was because Officials want his character to be special:

Though it doesn’t look like Wyatt will be staying away for too long as the company is now advertising him for next week’s episode of Raw.

So we can expect the former WWE Champion to return to TV during the August 19th episode of the show from Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Next week’s episode of Raw will also feature the return of the King Of The Ring tournament and while WWE hasn’t revealed a lot of details, a new report has confirmed the date when its finals will take place. You can check out the report on the matter here.

Bray Wyatt finally returned to Monday Night RAW this past week. He appeared after a match between Samoa Joe and Finn Balor. Wyatt proceeded to attack Balor, nailing him with his Sister Abigail finisher.

He returned in the creepy mask that has become so popular thanks to the Firefly Fun House segments.

Speaking on SiriusXM’s Busted Open Radio, Bully Ray offered some advice to help Wyatt’s latest iteration achieve longevity in WWE.

“The key to this working and having longevity is going to be Bray Wyatt and his willingness to protect the character and every last thing the character does,” he said. “The same way the Undertaker protected the Undertaker. You have to. This is a special character that cannot be overexposed, it can not be allowed to get burnt out. If you pick and choose your spots with Bray Wyatt, just like they did on Monday night, you will have something special.”

Bully Ray continued this juxtaposition between The Fiend character and The Undertaker:

“If I’m Bray Wyatt, I’m looking at a couple of the hurdles that the Undertaker had to get over with that character, that is very similar to the Fiend character, and I’m going to try and avoid those hurdles and pitfalls right now. I want to keep myself special at every turn, that’s what Bray needs to do with his entire act. Nothing can be prostituted, nothing can be given away, nothing should be done with the Fiend that is a throwaway and really didn’t matter. Everything has to mean something, and that’s how you protect it and get longevity out of that.”

Bray Is The Key

Bully Ray compared the Fiend to Doink The Clown if he had been turned up to the “millionth level.”

He then stated that the key to the Fiend’s success is in not allowing it to become stale.

Ray argued the way to combat that risk is to use the character sparingly, and that WWE needs to trust Bray to make the right decisions for the character.