John Cena
We’re so used to seeing John Cena in Hollywood films that we often forget that he started as a wrestler. Then again, who could ever forget his bleached hair? He started wrestling in the late ‘90s, and today, he’s just started the Peacemaker series while also working on the Fast & Furious 9 movie.
He has won the WWE Championship 13 times so far and has even won ten Slammy Awards. No wonder how he was able to earn a $60-million fortune. Just on his Instagram account, Cena has over 14.8 million followers! In 2021, he’s also expected to host Wipeout.
Sting
He may be 61 years old right now, but Sting’s career is far from over, as he’s just recently signed over to the All-Elite Wresting. His real name is Steve Borden, and his story started in the mid-80s with the Continental Wrestling Association. He was still nicknamed Flash back then.
Today, he’s regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, defeating all his rivals, even Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair! He has been named as the WCW World Heavyweight Champion six times. Quite recently, within 2021, we saw him on the All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite show.
Bret Hart
The thing that separates Bret Hart’s story from other wrestlers is that he grew up surrounded by wrestling in his household. Although that may sound problematic, it isn’t, since we’re referring to his father, Stu Hart, who was one of Canada’s better-known wrestlers at the time.
It didn’t take long for Bret to want to be involved with the industry too. Overall, he has held 17 championship titles for the WCW and WWE alike. He is 63 years old right now and mostly does acting. As a matter of fact, he’ll be playing on an upcoming film called Tales from the Dead Zone.
Trish Stratus
Although Trish Stratus has endured many different business ventures throughout her career, even owning a yoga studio, she’s mostly known for her professional wrestling. After her first professional appearance in 2000, she immediately signed with T&A. Today, she’s 45 years old and officially a WWE Hall of Fame Inductee.
She may no longer be wrestling with the same frequency, but she’s still making headlines whenever she does. The last time that Stratus was on WWE SmackDown! was in 2019. She has since played on movies like Christmas in the Rockies and presented an award on WWE: Slammy Awards in 2020.
The Heartbreak Kid
Speaking of WWE Hall of Famers, we couldn’t have possibly left Shawn Michaels, or The Heartbreak Kid, out of this list. His career was launched in 1985 when he made his professional debut in the World Class Championship Wrestling. A couple of years later, he started wrestling for the World Wrestling Federation, now known as WWE.
Michaels is 55 years old right now and has a surprisingly busy career to the day. As a matter of fact, just within 2021, he’s already been on My Way: The Life and Legacy of Pat Patterson and on WWE Day Of series! He’s even active on Twitter, with over four million followers.
Rey Mysterio
He kept the Mexican Lucha Libre wrestling tradition alive since he first started wrestling back when he was 14 years old. Rey Mysterio is still spending a lot of his time in the ring, despite being 46 by now! He’s had a son, Dominik, who’s also a professional wrestler.
For the biggest part of his life, Rey Mysterio has been surrounded by wrestling. He has even won the World Heavyweight Championship twice. Despite his small stature, being five-foot-six and weighing 175 pounds, he’s still managed to defeat most of his rivals. The last time we saw him in 2021 was in WWE SmackDown!.
The Rock
Here’s someone who’s no stranger to rebranding himself. Even after all the years he’s been around, Dwayne Johnson only seems to be getting bigger and more rock-solid than before! His ring debut was back in the ‘90s, with the WWF, going as Rocky Maivia. It didn’t take long for him to come up with The Rock after that.
Today, we’re mostly used to seeing him acting; after all, he’s even starred in The Jumanji films. He had officially announced his retirement from wrestling in 2019 when he also last appeared on WWE SmackDown!. A year later, he participated in the Meeting the Undertaker documentary.
Sable
Sable’s career may not have been as long-lived as others’, lasting just over a decade, but she didn’t need more time to make an impression. After all, she was even able to hold the WWF Women’s Championship title once while also winning two Slammy Awards.
She was born in Florida in 1967 and started wrestling professionally by 1997. She retired in 2006, at the same time with her husband, who’s also quite the famous wrestler, Brock Lesnar. They now have two sons together. Sable alone is worth close to $10 million by now.
Virgil
He’s gone by many ring names, but arguably the one that stuck around the most was Virgil. Mike Jones started wrestling professionally in 1985 with the Championship Wrestling Association. A year later, he made his Virgil debut with the WWF. He is 58 years old right now and last played for the All Elite Wrestling company.
As a matter of fact, the last time we saw him was in All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite in 2020. He’s back to his original stage name now, Soul Train Jones. While with the WWF, Virgil was able to win the Million Dollar Championship in the SummerSlam of 1991.
The Undertaker
Having spent three decades wrestling for the WWE, when The Undertaker announced his retirement in 2020, it was accompanied by many different events, including the release of Meet the Undertaker documentary film. He signed with the company in 1990, three years after he made his ring debut.
It took some experimentation for The Undertaker nickname to stick, but there was no turning back once it did. It was, after all, the perfect one to characterize his persona. After winning seven World Heavyweight Championships, he’s rightfully considered one of the greatest wrestlers ever.
Stacy Keibler
She may have won more beauty pageants than wrestling championships, but Stacy Keibler is probably one of the most famous female professional wrestlers of the '00s. She made her debut in 1999, with the WCW, as part of the so-called Nitro Girls. By 2001, she had switched to the WWE.
That was when she got nicknamed The Legs of WWE due to her shapely long legs. Keibler’s gone by other names, too, like Super Stacy and Miss Hancock. In 2006 she announced her departure, but she still hasn’t said goodbye to the world of wrestling. In 2019 she inducted Torrie Wilson into the WWE Hall of Fame.
Tito Santana
In 2004, Tito Santana was finally inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. By that time, he had made a name for himself in wrestling, starting from the Championship Wrestling from Florida back in 1977. Today, he’s proud to say that he’s held the WWF Intercontinental Champion title twice in his life.
Of course, he switched through many nicknames before settling for Tito Santana, including El Matador, hence the outfit in the left picture. The last time he was on WWE Monday Night RAW was in 2010; however, his career is far from being over. He’s now going to be playing in a film called Lolipop Gang in 2022.
Kevin Nash
Surely Kevin Nash doesn’t look as frightening now as he did back when he was starting. He still stands over six feet tall, though, which is intimidating in itself! Nash was born in Michigan in 1959. He started wrestling professionally in the ‘90s with the WCW. He even had an orange mohawk back then!
He’s gone by Diesel, Master Blaster Steel, and Vinnie Vegas. Nash has won six world heavyweight championships, five with the WCW and just one with the WWF. Nevertheless, in 2015 he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. The last time we saw him was in a 2020 episode of WWF SmackDown!.
Scott Hall
He’s gone by many different names in the ring, wrestled for different associations, and now that he’s 62, Scott Hall might very well be considered a legend. He made his debut in 1984 with the National Wrestling Alliance. It didn’t take long before he switched over to bigger wrestling companies, like the WCW and WWF.
He tried going by Magnum, Scott Gator Hall, Big Scott, and The Diamond Stud, but his real name seems to have stuck with him the most. Throughout most of his career, he remained a babyface hero. In 2021 we got to see him on My Way: The Life and Legacy of Pat Patterson.
Tori Poch
When Tori Poch made her debut in wrestling in 1988, little did she know that she’d still be known for it today! Soon enough, she joined the Ladies Professional Wrestling Association, winning the Super Ladies Showdown championship, before taking a hiatus.
She came back most stunningly, signing over to the WWF, in a fruitful collaboration until 2001, when she retired from wrestling. Nowadays, if we were to see Tori up-close, we’d probably never guess that she used to wrestle! She owns and operates her own yoga studio in her hometown, Portland, Oregon.
Ric Flair The Nature Boy
Every so often, Ric Flair is referred to as one of the greatest wrestlers out there. Of course, he has the background to prove it, with an almost four-decade-long career and countless Championship titles to go with it. He’s played for every well-known wrestling company, including the WCW and WWF, now WWE.
In 2012, he officially retired from the ring, but a man like him, can’t stay away for too long. He’s now working as a professional wrestlers manager and frequently appears on shows like WWE Monday Night Raw. Meanwhile, he’s gone by names like The Black Scorpion and The Nature Boy.
Ted Dibiase
When it comes to villain wrestlers, they’d probably be looking a lot different today without Ted DiBiase’s contribution to the industry. To the day, he’s considered one of the most well-rounded villain characters and one of the best technical wrestlers out there.
It all started in 1974 when he made his debut on the Mid-South Wrestling. By the end of the decade, he had already started wrestling on the WWF. Today, he frequently appears on shows like RAW. The last time he did so was in 2019. For now, he’s going to be taking part in the Wrestling with Faith documentary.
Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat
Back in 1976, Ricky Steamboat, or better yet, The Dragon, made his professional wrestling debut with the American Wrestling Association. For the biggest part of his career, he remained a babyface character, despite the many changes in his style. Soon enough, The Dragon started playing for the WWF as well.
Today that he’s long retired, he’s proud to have held 12 World Tag Team Championships, four United States Heavyweight Championships, and World Television Championships. Though his ring name is arguably terrifying, his real one is just as frightening because his real surname is Blood. The last time we saw him was in WWE Backstage in 2020.
Sunny
She’s one of the WWE’s Divas, and rightfully, also one of its Hall of Famers. Tammy Lynn Sytch got famous as Sunny while wrestling for companies like the WWF, Extreme Championship Wrestling, and Ring of Honor. She’s only five-foot-four, but what she lacked in height, she makes up in personality.
In the most recent years, she’s been having some legal troubles, which had her keeping off the spotlight. In fact, her most recent arrest was in the summer of 2020 for allegedly eluding a police officer. Nevertheless, she’s hardly forgotten, and in 2020, some old footage of her was featured in WWE Timeline.
Jake “The Snake” Roberts
He may be 65 years old now, but nothing can keep Jake The Snake Roberts out of the ring for too long, not even chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for that matter! He got his diagnosis in late 2020 but still appeared on the All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite and Dark shows in 2021.
The Snake got his nickname because he often brought snakes along with him in his matches. He’s been playing for the WWE, with some pauses, since the mid-80s! Currently, he’s signed over to All-Elite. The Snake now is a father of eight children, whom he had during his previous relationships.
Kane
When speaking of wrestling villains, Kane could not possibly be missing from the conversation. His real name is Glenn Thomas Jacobs, but it’s safe to say that everyone knows him by his ring-name. Of course, when the Undertaker: The Last Ride docuseries came out in 2020, Kane was in it too, being his supposed half-brother.
Even now, when he’s in his 50s, Kane is still out there wrestling. The last time we saw him do so was in the WWE: Royal Rumble in 2021. On top of everything, he’s also a father of two, whom he had with Crystal Goins, and even has two grandchildren!
Diamond Dallas Page
Seeing how Dallas Page, or better yet, Diamond, is a WCW Triple Crown Champion, we couldn’t have possibly left him out. He was born in 1956 in New Jersey. Although he started to become a professional wrestling manager, it didn’t take long for him to have his go at the ring.
He’s wrestled for all the big companies and has even been inducted to the WWE Hall of Fame since 2017. On top of everything, Diamond Dallas Page is also quite the actor. We’ll now be seeing him in a film called The Replaceable within 2021.
The Iron Sheik
Though he started being involved with wrestling in the early ‘60s, it wasn’t until the ‘80s when The Iron Sheik really got to shine. After all, that was the time when the entire wrestling industry got its big break. His real name is Hossein Khosrow Ali Vazir, and he was born in Iran back in 1976.
In time, he became one of the most notorious wrestling villains out there, even winning the WWF World Heavyweight Championship in 1983. He’s mostly known for his rivalry with Hulk Hogan, the All-American hero. Today, Sheik is 78 years old. Old footage of him was featured on 2020’s Ric Flair’s Best WWE Matches.
Stretcher
Although Barry Horowitz had wrestled for many companies, his time in the World Wrestling Federation was the peak of his career. He first started wrestling for the WWF in 1987, and then again after he took a small break in 1991. When he started, he was going by the name Stretcher, but clearly, that nickname never stuck with him.
Today Barry Horowitz is 61 years old. The last time he ever was on TV was in 2000 with WCW Saturday Night. In 2020, however, some archival footage of him was featured in the making of WWE’s Craziest Moments. Surprisingly, he’s, to the day, quite active on Facebook!
Tugboat
When Fred Ottman was starting, he was wrestling for the World Wrestling Federation, going by Tugboat, most notably an ally to Hulk Hogan, and quite the good guy. Soon enough, he went to the dark side, becoming the Typhoon, and formed the Natural Disasters.
Eventually, Ottman moved on to the WCW, making the most memorable first appearance, as he failed a stunt. However, his career wasn’t affected by it, and he went on as The Shockmaster until 1994. Today, he’s 64 years old and hasn’t been involved with wrestling since 2009.
Psycho Sid
In 1989 Sid Eudy got signed with the World Championship Wrestling company, and that was when he got his Sid Vicious ring-name. Today, we’ve gotten to know him as Sid Justice, Steele, and even Psycho Sid. In fact, in 2020, some old footage of his Psycho Sid persona was featured at the WWE: Slammy Awards.
Overall, wrestling under the Heavyweight category, Sid has won one United States Heavyweight and one World Heavyweight Championships with the WCW and two for the WWF. He’s 60 years old now and hasn’t wrestled since 2017 when he beat Paul Rosenberg in Ottawa.
Mideon
Though he’s switched between many names while in the ring, Dennis Knight is probably better known as Phineas I. Goldwin, as that was his name while with the WWF. His professional wrestling career started in the early ‘90s when he played for the WCW as Tex Slazenger.
We may not have expected seeing him these days, since he’s been working as a chef in Florida for quite some time now, but in 2020, he made a small comeback. Again as Phineas Goldwin, he appeared on the WWE Day Of docuseries and the WWE Survivor Series.
Skinner
No wonder he was part of The Fabulous Ones wrestling duo, as looking at this old picture of Steve Keirn, he’s quite flashy! Today, he’s far from it, however, being 69 years old. We got to see him most recently on A Future WWEL The FCW Story in 2020, and the time that had gone by was visible.
Nevertheless, Keirn made wrestling history first with The National Wrestling Alliance, then with the WWF as the Skinner. The last time he wrestled was in 2007 with WWE’s Monday Night Raw. He is also the co-founder and owner of the Florida Championship Wrestling promotion company.
Goldberg
He’s one of the wrestlers that was brought to life in the ‘90s. Before that, he attempted playing football, even briefly signing with the Atlanta Falcons. He was born in 1966, meaning that he’s 54 years old right now. Goldberg is currently signed with the WWE, appearing on its Monday Night Raw and Royal Rumble shows.
Part of the reason he became such a success was his long-lasting winning streak in the late ‘90s, which ended in 1998. He’s now also known to act; after all, he’s been in films like The Longest Yard. Within 2021, he also participated in WWE’s the Bump show.
Jacqueline
The reason why everyone will always remember Jacqueline Moore is that she was the first woman ever, let alone African American, to win the WWE Cruiserweight Championship in 1997. Jacqueline is 57 years old now and hasn’t taken part in any wrestling activities since 2018.
According to her IMDb page, that was when she last appeared on WWE Monday Night Raw and WWE Royal Rumble. In the meantime, she has also worked as a professional wrestling manager. We got to see some old matches of hers in 2021, with The Best of WWE: Royal Rumble Matches of the 2010s.
Stone Cold Steve Austin
With his characteristic move, the Stone Cold Stunner, Steve Austin had absolutely no problem becoming one of the most influential wrestlers this world had ever seen! He was born in 1964 in Texas and started wrestling by the early ‘90s with the WCW. He only started on WWF in 1995.
He’s now known as the Stone Cold Steve Austin, mostly due to his infamous move. He even has his own show, since 2019, the Straight Up Steve Austin! On top of everything, Steve has also earned himself a fortune of $40 million. In 2021 he appeared on Notsam Wrestling.
Cactus Jack
In 1991, Mick Foley debuted his Cactus Jack character on the WCW. Five years later, he changed again, this time going by Mankind with the WWF. Despite the character changes, Foley has won three WWF World Championships in his time, among many other belt-shaped honors.
In 2020, he was even part of the WWE 2K Battlegrounds video game! He’s 55 years old, still out there wrestling, and still as relevant as ever. Within a year, we saw him on WWE: Story Time, the Slammy Awards, and on WWE Day Of the docuseries.
Batista
Without a doubt, Batista is one of the best professional wrestlers out there. After all, he was World Heavyweight Champion for over 280 days in a row! He’s overall won six World Championships while wrestling for the WWE. These days, however, he’s mostly focused on his acting.
Since 2014 he has been portraying Drax on the Guardians of the Galaxy movies. He’s even working on the third film of the franchise, which is expected in 2023. In the meantime, he will also play on Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead movie in 2021. Batista is said to have a $16-million fortune right now.
Randy Orton
Unlike many of the wrestlers on this list, Randy Orton’s career is still ongoing. In fact, he’s hardly ever taken a break since he started wrestling professionally in 2000. After all, it’s in his blood, being a third-generation wrestler, like his grandfather and father before him, Bob Orton and Jr.
So far, he has won ten World Championships, and it’s safe to say that he’ll win even more. Already, within 2021, we’ve seen him on the WWE Main Event and WWE Monday Night Raw. In 2020 he won a Slammy for the Best Rivalry of the Year with Edge.
Edge
It seems as though no matter what Edge chooses to do, he’ll be successful at it. In the ‘90s, he decided that he wanted to wrestle, and in turn, he got signed with the WWF. Even though he was a villainous character for most of it, he was always a fan favorite.
Now that he’s acting, he’s also quite successful, playing in the Vikings series as Flatnose. Even though he retired officially in 2011, in 2020, he made quite the dynamic comeback, even winning a Slammy Award for his rivalry with Randy Orton. He’s said to be worth around $14 million right now.
Lita
She can sing, she can act, and she can perform, but most importantly, Amy Dumas can wrestle. After all, she’s a four-time WWE Women’s Champion! She’s been on both the heroic and the villainous sides throughout her career; however, the last time she was on WWF SmackDown! was in 2019.
As a wrestler, she went by Lita. She’s also formed a punk-rock band named the Luchagors, which released one album with the same name in 2007. Today, Lita is 45 years old. The last time we saw her on TV was, surprisingly, in a Bachelorette episode in 2020.
Madusa
Alundra Blayze was born in Milan, Italy, in 1964. Going by the ring name Madusa, she managed to become famous around the world, and it looks like she’s still at it today, well in her 50s. She started wrestling professionally for the American Wrestling Association in 1986.
Eventually, she joined the WCW and then the WWF. In 2020, she made a comeback on the ring with the All-Elite Wrestling. A less known fact about her is that she’s also a monster truck driver, at least until 2014, when she suffered an injury. Madusa is currently married to Alan Johanson.
Hulk Hogan
When Hulk Hogan was starting, he experimented with various personas. Today, he’s arguably the cream of wrestling royalty while he’s enjoying his well-deserved retirement. Hogan started as an all-American hero but soon became a well-rounded villain, weighing over 300 pounds and standing six feet and seven inches tall!
Since his reinstatement on the WWE Hall of Fame in 2018, Hogan has occasionally appeared on shows like WWE Monday Night RAW and WWE SmackDown!. According to his ESPN interview, he always gets mixed impressions from the shows’ fans and wrestlers alike. He’s now 67 years old and worth around $25 million.
Lex Luger
Ever since Lex Luger was involved in a freakish accident in the ‘00s, he’s had to do a lot of rehabilitation for him even to be able to walk by himself again. Nevertheless, keeping in mind his popularity, he’s still working for the WWE, only now outside the ring, as an advisor to younger professionals.
He started his career in the mid-80s, too, while training with Hiro Matsuda. Before that, he had given football a go, even signing off-season with the Green Bay Packers. He has since won the WCW World Heavyweight Champion twice! Luger is now 62 years old and worth approximately $400K.
Big Show
In the beginning, Big Show was introduced as The Giant, son of Andre the Giant. However, he soon enough outshined his supposed father, becoming Big Show. He started wrestling in the ‘90s. Who’d have thought that in 2020 he’d even have his own sitcom called The Big Big Show?
Between the WWF and the WCE, Big Show has won seven world championships. He’s also earned himself a fortune of around $20 million. The last time we saw him, for now, was in the WWE Monday Night Raw show in 2021. He’s 48 years old now, married to his second wife, Bess Katramados.