The Undertaker: I Could Have Done More With Nu-Metal ‘American Badass’ Persona
As perhaps the greatest WWE Superstar of all time, the Undertaker has been reflecting on his 30 years in WWE. In a new interview, Taker (aka Mark Calaway) speaks about his nu-metal biker persona, the American Badass, and reveals the character may have been changed too early.
After 10 years of playing the iconic Deadman, the Undertaker debuted his American Badass persona in 2000. At first, he entered on a motorcycle to Kid Rock’s “American Badass,” receiving an incredible ovation from WWE fans. Taker’s entrance music was quickly changed to Limp Bizkit’s “Rollin’ (Air Raid Vehicle),” which became the song synonymous with this era of Mark Calaway’s career.
"I think we cut that off… we cut that off kind of early when we did the American Badass the first time. I think we could have got a little more mileage out of it, but, it was a different variation. It was an older iteration of it,” Taker tells ComicBook.com. “The American Badass has got a few more years on him. He's a little more grizzled even. And there were still so many I think, aspects of the Undertaker you could see in there, so I think it was just like I've wrapped everything all together. And I think those people were really excited."
The American Badass character evolved into "Big Evil" in 2001, before the Undertaker’s classic character was revived in 2004. American Badass Undertaker made an epic appearance at this year’s Wrestlemania, however, defeating AJ Styles in their critically acclaimed Boneyard Match.
The Undertaker recently spoke to Loudwire to discuss his favorite metal bands, the most metal WWE Superstar of all time and much more. Check out our exclusive chat with Mark Calaway here.
Head over to the WWE Network to watch the incredible new Undertaker docuseries, The Last Ride, which delves into the personal life of Mark Calaway for the very first time.
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