WWE Hall Of Famer Bret Hart Explains Challenges Of Turning Heel For A Top Babyface

Bret Hart is often regarded as one of the most beloved babyface wrestlers in WWE history, with many younger fans during the early 1990s viewing the Canadian star as their childhood hero. Similarly, John Cena filled that role but for a different youth generation, having been a global inspiration throughout most of the 2000s and 2010s, but this past March, Cena's days of being the hero came to an end. The 16-time World Champion turned heel at the Elimination Chamber and aligned himself with The Rock, betraying those who looked up to him, and vowed to "ruin wrestling." Hart has since commented on Cena's heel turn speaking on "The Ariel Helwani Show," explaining he may struggle to avoid embracing any babyface tendencies. 

"I trust that John can pull it off. I haven't seen anything that he's done, including an interview. But I'll be honest, before I heard it that happened, I would have said it's going to be hard for him to do that and maybe it is, maybe it isn't. But it's hard to have been the character he was, especially with the Make-A-Wish stuff and he was like me, he was a longtime hero and when you turn bad, when you turn heel, it's kind of a fresh start for you as a character. Like you got to not be a good guy and resist anything that turns you into a good guy and I thought I balanced that out pretty well."

Hart continued to reflect on working as a heel in WWE, explaining that he had to reject anything that would portray him as a hero similarly to Cena, but his Canadian background would often make it easier to garner heat from the American audience.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "The Ariel Helwani Show" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.