WrestleMania is where the stars come to play, including those from outside WWE.
“The Grandest Stage of Them All” is the time of year for the company to culminate its biggest storylines, and it’s when WWE has the most eyeballs on its product.
The growth of the company in the overall zeitgeist of American pop culture has seen more and more celebrities join in on the festivities. Not all appearances have been hits, but these seven were definitely highlights in the history of the event.
First, an honorable mention.
George Steinbrenner
The late New York Yankees owner appeared in a pre-taped skit at WrestleMania VII. Instant replay still was a novelty in 1991, and Steinbrenner debated the result of that year’s Royal Rumble with former NFL punter and broadcaster Paul Maguire. Vince McMahon, who also worked as a commentator, was the moderator of this “debate,” which featured Maguire calling Steinbrenner a “butthead.”
Steinbrenner was very sincere in his performance, which adds to the hilarity of the segment, regardless of whether it was intended or not. This only is an honorable mention because the segment doesn’t exist on the WWE Network or Peacock. There hasn’t been a clear reason as to why, but those who bought WrestleMania VII on Coliseum Video or VHS were able to see the segment (and still can if they have those tapes).
Now, on to the main list, which is in no particular order:
Pete Rose
The Cincinnati Reds legend might not be in the Baseball Hall of Fame, but he is in the WWE Hall of Fame. That’s because the three-time World Series champion made multiple appearances at WrestleMania, where he primarily had run-ins with Kane.
Rose dressed up as the San Diego Chicken at WrestleMania 15 and took a tombstone for his troubles. A year before, he took another tombstone piledriver from Kane, who did a good job at protecting the baseball icon. And Rose did a solid job of selling the move, too.
Johnny Knoxville
Pro wrestling’s greatest appeal is how it can give fans a little bit of everything. That was the case at WrestleMania 38 when Knoxville took on Sami Zayn in an “anything goes match.” The “Jackass” star brought the mayhem and plunder that is iconic with the franchise. Zayn has been one of the most versatile talents in modern pro wrestling. He can deliver excellent in-ring action, mesh with the WWE main event style and sell wacky comedy.
The latter is what fans at AT&T Stadium got, and if that’s not your jam, then this match was a skip. But those who enjoyed it really did, especially the use of a cartoonishly large mouse trap and, of course, multiple groin shots.
Lawrence Taylor
The former New York Giants star arguably is one of the best NFL players of all time, certainly up there for New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick. Taylor was two years removed from retirement when WrestleMania 11 rolled into the then-Hartford Civic Center, now XL Center. Bam Bam Bigelow got into a scuffle with the Hall of Fame defensive lineman, and the latter received some assistance from Diesel for the main event match.
That was the only issue with this match. WWE was in a down period in 1995, and Diesel was not moving tickets as world champion. However, Taylor held his own in the match. He had the likes of Steve McMichael, Ken Norton Jr. and Reggie White in his corner, and Bigelow was a solid worker that helped Taylor in the match. If this wasn’t in the main event, it probably gets looked at in a better light.
Bad Bunny
WWE has been desperate for mainstream appeal since the first WrestleMania in 1985, so when the company lucked into one of the biggest global recording artists also being a wrestling fan, it was going to get as much as it could out of an angle that led up to a WrestleMania 37 match against The Miz and John Morrison. The match was fine, but the goal was to get Bad Bunny over, and mission accomplished. He has been open about the training he did leading up to the match, and it paid off. The Miz and Morrison did well to sell for Bad Bunny, and he had a solid entrance and had the biggest highlight of the night with a Canadian Destroyer.
Mr. T
The first WrestleMania was a huge success thanks to the spectacle and the big stars at the event. Mr. T teaming up with Hulk Hogan against “Rowdy” Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff is a match that defined many WWE fans. The WrestleMania II boxing match between Mr. T and Piper was bad, but the back-and-forth encounters and real-life animosity helped keep the feud memorable for decades.
Cyndi Lauper
WWE was wise to profit off the MTV boom, with Lauper being one of the icons. Pro wrestling manager “Captain” Lou Albano featured in the “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” music video as Lauper’s father, which helped connect her with the “Rock ‘n’ Wrestling” era of WWE. Lauper primarily is known as being Wendi Richter’s manager for her match against Leilani Kai, but she had multiple segments with Piper that made her an influential figure in WWE.
Mike Tyson
The start of the “Attitude Era” is a contested debate. But WrestleMania 14 is one marquee event that has been cited as the catalyst to WWE’s boom in the late ’90s. Tyson still was at his peak in popularity in 1998, and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was ready for his crowning moment against Shawn Michaels, who needed convincing from The Undertaker to put over WWE’s next big star.
Tyson didn’t do anything memorable during the match, but his knockout punch on Michaels, who he had been teaming with as part of D-Generation X, remains one of the biggest highlights of the “Attitude Era.” And Tyson raising Austin’s arm capped off a pay-per-view that would define WWE for a new generation of fans.
