WWE Kisses That Had Sent Fans Into An Uproar
Professional wrestling has always had comparisons to soap operas, and this is especially the case with WWE, who have been known to write bombastic romantic storylines once in a while. Some comparisons to soap operas have weight, and romance storylines have always been very popular among WWE fans. Perhaps the most famous of these is "Macho Man" Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth and their emotional reunion at WrestleMania VII.
Wedding segments have become known as something of a needle mover. Relationships and betrayals always deliver a strong emotional response from a WWE audience, even if they were never fully invested in the storyline to begin with. But not all storylines of this nature have been critically acclaimed by fans. Some have been panned for lack of chemistry, lack of tact, or even lack of morals by the ones who are booking the storylines. There have been more than a few WWE kisses that have invoked the anger of many WWE fans.
Triple H & Stephanie McMahon kiss in front of Mr. McMahon
The story of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon's relationship in kayfabe begins quite controversially. During Stephanie McMahon's wedding to Test, Triple H interrupted the ceremony to reveal that she couldn't marry Test because she was already married to him. Triple H then showed footage of himself taking a drugged up Stephanie to a drive through wedding ceremony in Las Vegas. The whole thing was played for laughs, even though Triple H was admitting to some very problematic actions.
Though all wasn't as it seemed, as the night after Armageddon 1999, it was revealed that it was all a ruse and that Stephanie and Triple H had planned the whole thing together. Stephanie wanted revenge on her father after he had orchestrated her kidnapping at the hands of The Undertaker. Stephanie and Triple H unveiled their master plan and made out on the ramp in front of Vince McMahon. This was a shocking revelation to most fans at the time and, though they didn't know it yet, it was the birth of one of the most powerful of power couples in WWE history.
Vince McMahon kisses Trish Stratus in front of a near-comatose Linda
In one of many McMahon family drama storylines, Mr. McMahon angrily announced to his wife Linda McMahon that he wanted a divorce in the middle of the ring. The announcement caused Linda McMahon to have a breakdown and she went into a coma-like state. Vince would then wheel Linda around backstage in a wheelchair and forced her to watch as he did all his dastardly deeds in WWE. One particular dastardly deed stands out in most WWE fans minds, however.
On an episode of "SmackDown" in 2001, Vince McMahon wheeled Linda out onto the stage and then proceeded to make out with Trish Stratus right in front of her. The kiss, tongues and all, was certainly a shocking moment and was one of many moments when WWE fans saw just how far Vince McMahon was willing to take his storylines. Mr. McMahon began a very public affair with Trish Stratus which would culminate in an admittedly very good match between Vince and Shane at WrestleMania X-Seven. In spite of that, Mr. McMahon's affair with Trish left fans feeling awkward. The age gap between Vince and Trish was substantial and the power dynamics of him being her boss made the whole thing very uncomfortable both onscreen and behind the scenes.
Torrie Wilson & Dawn Marie
In 2002, Dawn Marie began a relationship with Torrie Wilson's real life father Al Wilson. Soon afterwards, Dawn Marie got engaged to Al Wilson but gave Torrie Wilson an ultimatum that she would break off the engagement if Torrie spent the night with her in a hotel room. Coming off the Attitude Era, WWE was still aiming itself at an adolescent male audience and this was especially true of Torrie Wilson vs. Dawn Marie storyline.
Dawn Marie showed footage of this hotel room meetup at Armageddon 2002 and fans were more than shocked at what went down. Torrie Wilson begrudgingly met up with Dawn Marie at the hotel and fans watched as Dawn Marie slowly and seductively stripped Torrie to her underwear before engaging her in a full on make out session ... then Al Wilson interrupted and it was revealed that the whole thing was a ploy by Dawn Marie to humiliate Torrie.
The segment, and the entire feud itself, has unsurprisingly not aged very well. The sexual overtones of the feud was WWE at its trashiest. Not to mention the poor taste of Al Wilson's kayfabe death (he died of a heart attack after having sex with Dawn Marie on their honeymoon) make fans feel this entire storyline is best left in the past.
Kane & Lita
In 2004, Kane began to terrorize Lita. After being kidnapped by Kane, Lita revealed she was pregnant and that Kane was the father. It was never said out loud but the clear implication was that Kane had raped her. Kane abused Lita for months and forced her to marry him with a particularly disgusting kiss on their wedding day.
This was just the first of many kisses Kane forced on Lita and each one just made fans more and more uncomfortable. The story would reach a new low however as Snitsky forced Lita to miscarry after he pushed Kane into her. Kane was suddenly now a babyface who was protecting his family and he and Lita began a more consensual relationship with Lita now happily kissing her former abuser. It was all so icky as fans were now forced to cheer for a rapist after all the terrible things he had done.
Edge & Lita
The Kane relationship wasn't the only controversial relationship Lita had in the mid-2000s. In 2005, it was revealed that Lita and Edge had been involved in a real life cheating scandal as Lita cheated on her boyfriend Matt Hardy with Edge. The story sent shockwaves through the wrestling world and it was the hottest topic amongst wrestling fans for months. WWE used the real life controversy to their advantage and booked Edge and Lita to become an onscreen couple.
Edge and Lita had undeniable chemistry together but WWE fans were not happy. Matt Hardy was a huge fan favorite at the time and every time Edge and Lita passionately kissed on "Raw" (which they did a lot) they were showered with fan disgust. The fan response to Lita was especially controversial as fans directed some very unsavory chants in her direction. Lita said on "Oral Sessions with Renee Paquette" that the abuse directed at her during this time almost made her quit the company altogether just a month into the storyline.
Edge & Vickie Guerrero
A lot of fans were happy when WWE hired Vickie Guerrero to a WWE contract, it was seen as WWE doing a nice thing for Eddie by looking after his wife after he had passed away. Though fans never could have imagined what storyline WWE had in store for Eddie Guerrero's widow.
On the "SmackDown" after Survivor Series 2007, Vickie Guerrero and Edge shocked the world by revealing that they were in a romantic relationship, complete with a disgustingly long and passionate kiss. This was just two years after Eddie's death and yet here was Vickie kissing Edge in one of the most loving embraces in WWE history.
Fans of Eddie Guerrero was not happy at this segment and the storyline which proceeded it as Edge and Vickie Guerrero became a power couple on "SmackDown" for the years following. Edge, and especially Vickie Guerrero, deserved props for making the storyline work, as they won over the fans and were able to garner the right kind of heat. The shock of that first kiss however would be something fans would never forget.
Randy Orton attacks and kisses Stephanie McMahon
In 2009, Randy Orton became one of the most sadistic characters WWE had ever seen. The week before the Royal Rumble 2009, Randy Orton punted Vince McMahon in the head and declared war on the McMahon family. Orton won that year's Royal Rumble and put himself on a collision course with WWE Champion, and McMahon family member, Triple H. Having already brutally attacked the WWE Chairman, many fans wondered what else Randy Orton could do, what could be worse than brutally attacking an old man? Well, Orton had some darker desires.
When Randy Orton brutally attacked Triple H and handcuffed him to the ropes on a 2009 episode of "Raw," Triple H's wife Stephanie McMahon ran down to plead with Orton for her husband's safety. Randy Orton though did not listen. Orton grabbed Stephanie by the hair and planted her with the hanging DDT and as Triple H looked on unable to do anything, Randy Orton did the unthinkable and kissed an unconscious Stephanie right in front of a helpless Triple H.
Fans still consider this action to be one of the most despicable acts a WWE heel has ever done.
Beth Phoenix & The Great Khali
At the Royal Rumble 2010, Beth Phoenix made history by becoming just the second women ever to enter a Royal Rumble. Phoenix made her shocking entrance at number six and faced down The Great Khali of all people. To the surprise of many, Beth Phoenix eliminated Khali in one of the Royal Rumble's strangest moments. Back in 2010, WWE's women's division was not treated as well as they are today and on paper this could have been a huge moment for women's wrestling. Though the way she eliminated Khali left fans scratching their heads.
Phoenix eliminated The Great Khali by surprising him with a kiss and then pulling him over the top rope. It certainly was shocking, but was it the best it could have been? Was a kiss the best way to eliminate him? Wouldn't overpowering Khali and then eliminating him legitimately have made Beth Phoenix look better? Having Phoenix be in the match was a great idea and a strong showing would have done wonders for the women's division at the time but fans felt the kiss cheapened the moment somewhat.
AJ Lee & Daniel Bryan
From 2011, AJ Lee become one of WWE's most popular female performers and upon her call up to the main roster she entered into a romantic relationship with Daniel Bryan. Bryan was a heel at the time and was defending the World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestlemania 28 against Sheamus. Bryan was not a good boyfriend to AJ and would routinely bully her in the lead up to the big event.
As the time came for the big match, the opening match of the show, Bryan turned away from Sheamus to kiss his girlfriend before being blindsided by Sheamus with a Brogue Kick. Bryan lost the World Heavyweight Championship in just 18 seconds. Bryan's loss cause fan uproar like WWE had never seen before. Fans were looking forward to seeing one of the best wrestlers in the world have a Wrestlemania match and they were deprived of that through bad booking. The outrage to Bryan's loss birthed the Yes Movement and launch him into superstardom. It all began with that one little kiss between Bryan and AJ and it rallied fans around Daniel Bryan in a manor that WWE had never seen before.
Eve Torres cheats on Zack Ryder with John Cena
In 2011, Zack Ryder surprised the powers that be in WWE by becoming one of the most popular performers in entire company. Ryder's YouTube show "Z! True Long Island Story" was an online sensation and Ryder's popularity shot through the roof in ways WWE had clearly never prepared for.
Zack Ryder started to get booked more and more on "Raw" but not exactly in the way most fans were hoping for. In early 2012, Ryder suddenly became friends with John Cena and began a storyline of trying to romance Eve Torres. As Cena was feuding with Kane during this time, Kane targeted Ryder and brutally attacked him on "Raw" leaving him wheelchair bound. Then weeks later, Ryder saw his girlfriend Eve Torres making out with John Cena while he helplessly and pathetically watched on from a wheelchair.
The segment was hated by everybody and fans were astounded at how badly WWE was booking Ryder. Ryder was one of the most over guys on the roster and yet WWE booked him in the most pathetic way possible.
Ric Flair & Becky Lynch
At Royal Rumble 2016, Charlotte Flair faced Becky Lynch for the Divas Championship. WWE had publicly started a "Divas Revolution" months earlier and fans were excited to see WWE's female performers booked better than they were previously. WWE's women of today generally do get booked as well as the men but WWE definitely went through something of a learning curve when they started the "Divas Revolution."
The match between Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair was very good with one major exception. Halfway through the match Ric Flair, who was at ringside as Charlotte's manager, distracted Becky Lynch as he forced an unwanted kiss on her. Fans were appalled at the action. WWE was trying to treat their women more seriously and yet they had Flair sexually assault a female performer? It was some seriously outdated booking that WWE should have been above at this point in their history. WWE realized they had messed up and the spot was edited out of YouTube clips and even the WWE Network.
Thankfully, this was the last time this kind of spot has happened in WWE.
Bobby Lashley & Lana
In September 2019, Rusev was coming off the popular Rusev Day gimmick and fans were excited to see what he would do next. After a match on "Raw," Rusev was surprised when his wife Lana came out onto the stage who then introduced Bobby Lashley before making out with him.
The storyline of Lana having an affair with Bobby Lashley made the popular Rusev just look pathetic. Rusev looked sad and did nothing as Lana and Lashley had their hands all over each other. Some fans were hopeful that maybe it was leading to a fresh new gimmick for Rusev but nothing really materialized. Week after week, Lana and Lashley made out in front of Rusev while he did nothing in retaliation. Lana accused Rusev of being a sex addict and the whole storyline just made Rusev look like a cuckold. A huge fall from grace for the man WWE fans considered to be one of their favorites.