A former WWE star has revealed that there were plans for them to join Bray Wyatt as part of a new group.
Wyatt, real name Windham Rotunda, tragically passed away in August 2023 at just 36 years of age. One of the most creative minds in the modern wrestling era, the segments, easter eggs and internet rabbit holes that were associated with the former WWE Champion became one of the most fascinating segments on TV each week, especially at a time when the product was not at the same standard it is at today.
Wyatt’s legacy remains as The Wyatt Sicks faction led by Uncle Howdy, played by Wyatt’s brother Bo Dallas, is a frequent fixture on Raw and left a path of destruction with their impactful debut. However, speaking in a new interview, a former WWE star has detailed behind-the-scenes conversations that could have seen another Wyatt faction debut.
Originally a part of WWE from 2016 to 2020, Eric Young returned to the company in November 2022 but left just a few months later. During that period, Young never made any appearances on TV. Speaking with Chris Van Vliet, Young first detailed the plans to work with 2 wrestlers, one of which was Bray Wyatt, but talks did not progress. Young also touched upon the fact that someone he used to work for “forced their way back in” and he asked for his release:
“So I was employed by them for I think eight or nine months. [People don’t know this because you weren’t on TV.] Yeah, some people know, but I think the majority of the world does not understand, because I would never show up at TV. The truth is, I never left my house. So yeah, I was proposed a gimmick to work there with two guys and was super excited about it. Then that didn’t happen, and one of them was Bray, and then Bray passed away, which sucked, and is unfair in every way possible.
So then it’s like, well pitch some new ideas, and then the person I worked for before forced his way back in. I just kind of said, there’s a lot of reasons why I didn’t want to work there at that point, but the number one reason was I just don’t want to work for a person like that. This is long before all the other stuff would come out.
But I was pretty convinced I knew who he was and how he was professionally, but more importantly, for me, morally, I just can’t work for a human being like that. So I asked for my release and was granted it. I’m not saying any of the stuff, because I had to sign an NDA. So yeah, it’s a whole weird thing.”
Eric Young Elaborates On Bray Wyatt Plans
When asked if he was going to be in an early iteration of The Wyatt Sicks group, Young confirmed that there were plans for him to be in a trio with Bray Wyatt and Bo Dallas and elaborated further on what took place:
“Yeah, I think the original idea was me, Bray and Bo as a trio. That’s what was told to me from Hunter, basically. So obviously I’m gonna jump at that. I’m friends with both of those guys. It would have been creatively just an unbelievable opportunity working there, working on the main roster, wrestling all over the world with two guys that I get along with well, and obviously a huge part of the show at that point.
The Fiend and Bray coming back was one of the most popular things at that time, one of the most viewed things. They put up those viral videos, they’d be viewed within six hours by millions of people. So being part of that was very appetizing. It’s kind of not in my wheelhouse, but close enough to my wheelhouse where I would have really enjoyed it, it would have been challenging, but in a really cool way. So I was obviously very excited, and then all the stuff happened with the sale and all this other weird stuff.
All of a sudden I wasn’t working for the person who hired me, and I wasn’t willing to do that. I don’t regret it, not at all. I think it’s the coolest. It’s not lost on me that I was able to walk away from money like that, stability like that because of what I believe, beliefs of the kind of human being that I am.
10 years ago, I don’t know if I would have been able to make that choice financially or personally or certainly not professionally. I’m in a position where I’ll be fine, I’ll figure it out. I hadn’t even talked to Scott [D’Amore] at the time, or TNA, we had zero conversations about it. I just knew I wasn’t going to work for the WWE anymore.
So it’s a wild one, but the truth is it was 100% my choice. I think there’ll be a lot of people that think that’s stupid, a lot of people that won’t make that choice. But I think for me in my career, I think it’s one of the proudest things I’ve ever done to be honest.”
Also in the interview, the TNA star looked back on the night they nearly lost an ear.
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