One of my favorite character transitions in the history of the WWE occurred when Wade Barrett went from yet another generic wrestler to the amazing and incomparable Bad News Barrett. In an interview with Ring Rust Radio, Barrett discusses his NXT roots, the innovative origins of the Bad News Barrett character, and his upcoming match with Big E for the Intercontinental Championship this Sunday at Extreme Rules.
Wade Barrett on the origins of the Bad News Barrett character:
"I could definitely see that happening. I've kind of been the first success of a character that's been born on WWE.com and that's the way of the future. WWE has always been very proactive in using technology like Twitter and being on the cutting edge of whatever is developing like that so the fact that we were able to try something out on social media and it got that response and creative team heard about it and was interested from there.
"The fact that I was able to do that away from TV programming, which is hard to get time on when you're trying to debut a new character, it's worked out pretty well for me for sure, so I'm sure people have seen that and decided to think of some ideas on their own. So the JBL and Cole show, which is the vehicle I used to get my character out there, and other platforms on WWE.com and the new WWE Network will be used in the future to sort of throw some stuff at walls and see what sticks on there."
If Zack Ryder was the first YouTube sensation in WWE, then Bad News Barrett is the first fully company-sponsored WWE.com / YouTube hit. Unlike Ryder, WWE was always behind Barrett backstage since his run in NXT season 1, and after his character was completely lost in the shuffle following the collapse of Nexus, Barrett needed something like this to really get back in the fold in the WWE mid-card scene in a big way.
Wade Barrett on the evolution of Bad News Barrett:
"At the time when I came up with it, I wasn't really doing anything too much on the show, I was on the low, cold matches and I wasn't really involved in any program or anything, so I felt like I wanted to do something different. The guy at WWE.com suggested that they use me in some way on the JBL and Cole show, so I had to think about it and Cody Rhodes came up with the idea originally where I would just keep giving bad news to everyone in somewhat of a reflection of my personality in the locker room.
"Thankfully it seemed to work in the form we were using it at the time and people responded to it and we took it from there. In terms of how it will evolve, that's very difficult to predict. I wasn't expecting people to be cheering me at the Hall of Fame when I came out to give bad news and the response I got later, the kind of baby face response where people were looking forward to hearing my bad news, it wasn't something I anticipated. So, it's something I'll just go with the flow and see how people respond and that really dictates how a character will evolve."
God bless Cody Rhodes for coming up with the Bad News Barrett character, as it has been highly entertaining over the past few months, whether it's on YouTube, TV, or at the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony that Barrett alluded to.
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Wade Barrett on what it would be like to win the IC Title at Extreme Rules to become four-time Intercontinental Champion:
"It would be pretty cool, ultimately I'd like to have just held it once and had it for the entire time, the last three years or whatever it would be, the fact that you're a four-time champion also means that you lost it at least three times, possibly four times, so it's kind of a good thing and a bad thing. To be always in that mix and challenging and getting titles is important for me. I want to stay relevant on TV and involved in important angles and things like that."
Barrett also talked about the IC title holding more weight now that the WWE and World Heavyweight Titles are combined, and he's absolutely right about that. I would like to see him with the belt from Big E at Extreme Rules, then head to the WWE European tour as the IC champ.
(credit: Ring Rust Radio and The Wrestling Observer)
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