Why The Ultimate Warrior Was Rumored To Have Died In The Early 90s
In the early 1990s, one of professional wrestling's biggest stars found himself at the center of one of the wildest urban legends in the history of the business. Unfounded rumors that The Ultimate Warrior had died and was replaced on-screen by a new wrestler with the same name and face paint began to fester among wrestling fans after the star seemingly disappeared from WWF television in the summer of 1991.
The WWE has since called the baseless rumor one of the longest-standing urban legends in WWE history. They said that fans latched onto the conspiracy theory because Warrior had returned at WrestleMania VIII with a different hairstyle and physique, and replaced his trunks with singlet ring gear.
Fans cooked up stories that suggested Jim Hellwig, the real man behind Warrior, had died due to a few different reasons. One rumor said that Warrior's death was due to liver failure — because of steroid use — while another said he died because his arm tassels caused a lack of circulation, according to Deadspin. But none of that, of course, was true.
Warrior's rumored death was not real, but it was plausible
It sounds ridiculous to suggest a television show could try and replace a real-life television personality with the hope that no one would notice. But if there was ever a type of show to do it, it might just be wrestling. And if there was ever a company to try such a thing, it would most definitely be the WWF.
WWF's history of trying to play switcheroo with the human beings behind their wrestlers only fueled rumors about Warrior's surmised passing, as per Deadspin. In the past, Vince McMahon's promotion had attempted to sneakily replace ultra-popular stars like The Undertaker, Diesel, and Razor Ramon with fill-ins during time off or when they left to join other companies.
The rest of the pro wrestling world appeared to start toying with The Ultimate Warrior's rumors, too. WCW soon introduced "The Renegade," a wrestler who wore the same outfit and sported the same energy and moveset as Hellwig's WWF character. No one, though, could ever replace the unparalleled hysteria that Warrior brought — or run down — to the ring.
Warrior ultimately died in 2014 after making his final WWE appearance one day earlier on "WWE Raw," in which he assured fans that the spirit of Ultimate Warrior will run in them forever.