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Jim Ross On Why He’s Not a Fan Of ‘Cool’ Heels In Wrestling, Formation Of nWo In WCW

September 11, 2021 | Posted by Blake Lovell

In a recent edition of Grilling JR, Jim Ross discussed Scott Hall and Kevin Nash leaving WWE for WCW, why he’s not a fan of “cool” heels in wrestling, and much more. You can read his comments below.

Jim Ross on Scott Hall and Kevin Nash jumping to WCW and why he’s not a fan of “cool” heels in wrestling: “They were “cool” heels, but I’m not a big fan of cool heels. It’s like being a funny heel. `Why should you dislike someone enough to want to see them get their ass beat if they’re entertaining you in a positive way or if they’re making you laugh. It’s like swimming upstream a little bit, and unfortunately, the ever-lasting images of Hall and Nash being “cool” heels didn’t evaporate. There are talents today that believe if they are cast or booked as a heel, they will have this fanbase. They don’t realize the majority of the fans do not like you if you are cast as a heel. You’re a villain in a scripted performance, so being loved and embraced by your audience as a villain is counterproductive in my view. Now, I say that, and on this occasion, all this stuff goes out the window because this worked. But as a steady diet of “cool” heels, it’s not a great tradeoff I don’t think.”

On Hall and Nash’s WWE exit: “They were big stars when they left WWE, and they both had distinguished resumes there – championships held and so forth. So they came in with a lot of positive fanfare. I think Hall and Nash had the table set very well, and they were treated very good leaving WWE, quite frankly – at least that was my opinion. So when they got to Atlanta working for Eric [Bischoff], they weren’t damaged goods, they weren’t soiled. They were fresh.

On the surprise of Hulk Hogan’s heel turn to form the nWo: “That’s what made it so good. It’s why the decision to do it worked really, really well because we didn’t see it coming. The guys in the ring – you can’t leave out the babyfaces in this scenario. They set the table for this to happen and make it more effective. Everybody deserves an atta boy quite frankly, everybody involved.

If using any of the above quotes, please credit Grilling JR with an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.

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