When it comes to the greatest factions in pro wrestling history, the New World Order is certainly one of them. Originally shocking the pro wrestling scene in 1996, the formation of the group was preceded by arguably the greatest heel turn of all time, as Hulk Hogan went to the darkside for the first time since the early stages of his career nearly 15 years prior. The faction initially dominated WCW, and acquired more names to strengthen the group, such as Ted DiBiase, Scott Steiner, Sean “Syxx-Pac” Waltman, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, and more.
The mastermind behind the creation, Eric Bischoff, was initially a bystander caught in the crosshairs of the quest for dominance by the nWo. However, it would later be revealed that he was the general of the group, as he wanted to destroy the WCW brand, as part of a storyline.
Perhaps the nWo would not have been as successful if Hogan did not make the decision to turn heel and charter an area that he was not very familiar with. Since he did make the decision to turn heel, nWo revolutionized the playing field of the Monday Night Wars, and was clearly a launchpad to provide leverage for WCW to defeat WWE for nearly two years.
Could the #nWo have gotten even BIGGER? @RealDDP @SCOTTHALLNWO & @TheRealXPac speculate… #TableFor3 #WWENetwork pic.twitter.com/XppzHURAzR
— WWE Network (@WWENetwork) January 29, 2018
According to recent reports, Hogan was asked to be a member of Bullet Club in order to further boost their uber-popular faction. This is something that has been teased for nearly a year, as Hogan told a fan during an autograph signing that he would love to be a member. Apparently, discussions resurfaced, and the deal fell through due to Hogan wanting $750,000 to seal the one-time deal.
Eric Bischoff was interviewed by WrestlingINC to discuss the pros and cons of Hogan making the move to align with Bullet Club.
“If [Hulk Hogan, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, and myself] came in as the grandfathers, if you will, came in and helped support it and endorse it and draw that immediate parallel between nWo and The Bullet Club which, by the way, is how it got started,” said Bischoff. “It kind of became hot as a result of them mimicking or copying or emulating or paying respect, however you want to say it, to the nWo. That’s how it got started, which is cool.”
Bischoff then highlighted how this could benefit or backfire on the current success of the faction.
“On the one hand, it could certainly bring a lot of notoriety, a lot of eyeballs, a lot of press, a lot of credibility, lots of good things could happen as a result of that. But on the flip side, a lot of bad things could happen, too. One of the reasons The Bullet Club is what it is, while it may be kind of a wink and a nod to the nWo, it’s also young, fresh guys of a new generation. There may be a portion of that audience, whether it’s a large portion or a small portion, that would go, ‘Eh, we don’t want to see that.”
Ultimately, according to Bischoff, the key to making this idea work is not the nWo coming in and “Bigfooting” Bullet Club, but paying respect to them for who they are and who they have become. Using the success of the nWo to build Bullet Club’s success, instead of diminishing it, would be the determining factor in making this idea worthwhile if it was to happen.
