WWE wanted to make the 2000s decade feel unpredictable since it represented multiple changes in eras. The Attitude Era ended to start the Ruthless Aggression Era, but the decade ended with the bigger change to the PG Era. Names like John Cena, Triple H and The Undertaker were viewed as the faces of that decade.
However, plenty of names were involved when looking back at the biggest twists to come from WWE in that time. WWE tried to keep the audience guessing with some unexpected surprises that few fans forecasted coming. The test of time shows these WWE storyline twists of the 2000s as the most shocking.
10 Paul Heyman Betrays Brock Lesnar For Big Show
Brock Lesnar had one of the best debut angles in WWE history with Paul Heyman at his side. The first half year in WWE saw Lesnar winning the King of the Ring tournament, becoming the youngest WWE Champion, defeating The Undertaker inside of Hell in a Cell.
However, it was the unbeaten streak of Brock that was the most impressive since he never got pinned in that time. WWE pulled off a huge twist for how the streak ended when Heyman betrayed Lesnar to help Big Show defeat him. No one expected the undefeated streak to end at Survivor Series 2002 in such a manner.
9 Vince McMahon Bringing In The New World Order
WWE signed the trio of Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall when their previously established WCW contracts expired. The original three members of the NWO joined WWE when Vince McMahon claimed he was bringing them in to “inject the poison” killing his own creation.
WCW’s biggest act ever coming to WWE was a huge deal, but no one expected it after their negative reputations grew quite bad at the end of the run. Even though the NWO experiment in WWE didn’t live up to the hype, the shocking twist of Vince bringing them was a huge moment.
8 Trish Stratus Chooses Christian Over Chris Jericho
The love triangle between Trish Stratus, Chris Jericho and Christian seemed quite obvious at the start. Stratus as a babyface for three years and the face of the women’s division when Jericho turned babyface after falling in love with her.
Everyone assumed Jericho and Trish would get together to continue their characters with Christian as the heel. However, Stratus shocked the world at WrestleMania 20 when she betrayed Jericho to reveal she was in love with Christian for an unexpected heel turn.
7 Maven Getting The Better Of The Undertaker
Maven had two career-defining moments both coming against The Undertaker that still holds up today. The first huge surprise came when Maven eliminated Undertaker from the 2002 Royal Rumble match in an all-time shocking elimination.
Fans reacted just as strongly to this as Triple H winning later in the match. Maven scored another victory over Undertaker when winning the Hardcore Championship thanks to The Rock’s interference. WWE planning such huge twists led to Maven becoming a hero for two nights.
6 Hulk Hogan Gets Fired As Mr. America
The working relationship between WWE and Hulk Hogan restarted multiple times in the 2000s. Hogan was back on and off between 2002 and 2003 when he had a great rivalry with Vince McMahon. WWE went a polarizing route of having Hogan wear a mask as Mr. America.
The story was that Vince badly wanted to fire Hogan, but he couldn’t prove it was him under the mask even though it was intended to be obvious as part of the joke. Real-life contract negotiation woes led to Hogan leaving during this angle. McMahon was ruthless when writing Hogan out by airing dark match footage of him unmasking to explain the kayfabe firing as a wild twist.
5 Shane McMahon Buys WCW
The entire wrestling industry changed after WCW fell apart and Vince McMahon took advantage by buying the competition as a great price. WWE used this as part of a storyline when Vince had a bitter rivalry going with his son Shane.
Vince boasted all night about owning WCW on a simulcast broadcast on both Nitro and Raw. The shock came later in the shows when Shane showed up live at Nitro to reveal he purchased the company while Vince was bragging too much before completing the deal. Only fans watching in the moment will understand the level of shock watching this night unfold.
4 Matt Hardy Confronting Edge & Lita
WWE ended up in an unexpected scandal when the love triangle of Lita cheating on Matt Hardy with Edge leaked online and went viral. Matt was fired despite being the victim in this scenario due to WWE wanting to avoid the drama getting worse since firing two wrestlers would be worse than one.
Fans chanting for Matt during Lita and Edge’s segments forced WWE’s hand to bring Hardy back. There were incredible reactions of shock and excitement when Matt started invading WWE shows to attack Edge. WWE had one of their best results of a worked shoot angle by booking this wild twist of fate.
3 Triple H Attacking Shawn Michaels
The return of Shawn Michaels to the ring in 2002 was a massive deal for WWE. An all-time great coming back after four years of retirement was already creating buzz, but WWE teased a bigger reunion of Michaels and Triple H reforming D-Generation X.
Fans bought it hook, line and sinker during their entrance with a huge pop until Triple H attacked him. Another chapter of the story saw Triple H brutally attacking Michaels in a parking lot after promising it wasn’t him. This huge twist started their first rivalry to great results that fans loved watching play out.
2 Eric Bischoff As Raw General Manager
No one expected Eric Bischoff in WWE after WCW ended since he felt like the most personal rival of Vince McMahon. However, the eventual signing of Bischoff proved that Vince would not put any animosity over a business decision. WWE took a turn with the brand split when the Vince vs Ric Flair ownership angle ran out of stream.
New General Managers were named, and the wrestling world was stunned when Bischoff debuted as Raw GM. The reaction is still incredible to watch back today when Booker T saw Bischoff in a backstage segment before the announcement.
1 Steve Austin Turns Heel To Unite With Vince McMahon
WWE booked one of the most surprising twists in wrestling history when Steve Austin turned heel to align with Vince McMahon. WrestleMania 17 already felt like a peak event in WWE during the popular Attitude Era with the best possible main event of The Rock vs Austin.
McMahon appearing ringside made everyone uneasy since fans loved both wrestlers as the top babyfaces. Austin accepting help from his biggest rival felt surreal when using that help to defeat Rock and become WWE Champion. Even though many fans criticized Austin’s heel run, the twist was a historic angle in wrestling history.