WWE Hall of Famer Booker T has a blunt verdict for any wrestler who blames creative for their lack of success: your job security lives or dies on your own performance, not the writer’s output.
The two-time WWE Hall of Famer argued that no amount of good scripting can save a performer whose in-ring work or star power isn’t strong enough.
Speaking on his Hall of Fame podcast, Booker said he never believed a writer alone could keep him a spot on the roster. To prove the point, he noted The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin as examples of talents WCW let go before WWE found value in them.
“Well, you know, I get that. I’ve never had a writer write for me and I really truly believed in that writer being able to keep me a spot on the roster. I just didn’t believe that at all,” Booker said.
“I don’t care what the writer writes. If your performance is not at a certain level, you’re at risk. You’re at risk of being one of those guys that’s going to get released. That’s just the bottom line.”
Booker T Points To Undertaker And Austin
Booker stressed that preparation is the only edge a wrestler can rely on.
“Preparation is the only luck you’re ever going to have. Being prepared to go somewhere else,” he said.
He used the WCW releases of The Undertaker and Austin to underline how performers can capitalize on opportunities elsewhere.
“It’s almost like when The Undertaker got let go from WCW. Stone Cold Steve Austin got let go from WCW and WWE said, ‘Man, we see value in these guys. Let’s bring them in. Let’s do something.’ And look at it now.”
For Booker, the determining factors are clear.
“Your in-ring acumen and your star power is the only thing going to keep your job. Bottom line,” he said.
The Undertaker As The Ultimate Example
Co-host Brad Gilmore brought up The Undertaker’s original gimmick, noting it sounded strange on paper: a dead man who didn’t sell much offense.
Booker agreed the concept could have failed, but said Undertaker turned it into a main event act for decades.
“That character would not have worked if The Undertaker’s in-ring work wouldn’t have carried it,” Booker said. “People can say what they want to say about The Undertaker in that role for the last 30 years, but that dude worked at a main event level for the last 30 years of his career. Bottom line, that’s just facts.”
Booker’s takeaway was simple: a writer can hand a wrestler an idea, but the performer has to make fans believe in it. It echoes his recent take on what it takes for a wrestler to reach the top of WWE, where he again put the responsibility on the talent rather than the booking.