The Master of Character and Storytelling

Nearly three years after his passing, Bray Wyatt remains deeply missed by those who worked alongside him in WWE.

Appearing on The Sal Licata Show on the seventh anniversary of Wyatt’s debut as The Fiend (see video below), longtime WWE commentator Michael Cole reflected on Windham Rotunda’s creativity, revealing an ambitious interview concept the two developed that never made it to television.

Cole praised Wyatt’s imagination, recalling watching him evolve from his early days as Husky Harris into one of the most unique performers WWE has ever seen.

“Bray and I did a lot of work together over the years. You know, Bray was awesome. I remember him as Husky Harris back in his NXT days. He was one of the most creative people that we’ve ever had in our company,” Cole said. “Unbelievably nice man as well. But he had so many ideas for obviously the Bray Wyatt character with the lantern and such and also for The Fiend.

“The Fiend was such a phenomenon. It was just so much fun to watch. It was always, ‘How are you going to translate this to the ring?’ And he was able to do that.”

Cole also revealed that he and Wyatt had spent years planning a unique sit-down interview inspired by infamous prison interviews with cult leader Charles Manson. The idea was fully mapped out, but for reasons unknown, it never came together.

“One of the stories, Bray and I had worked for a number of years on trying to do a sit-down interview where it would be like Michael Cole interviewing Charles Manson in prison. And if you’ve ever gone back and watched some of the old videotapes of interviews that had been done with Manson in prison, it was a really intriguing idea by Bray,” Cole said. “We had even mapped it out, and the concept was ready to go. And for some reason, it never happened. But I thought that would have really — especially if it was a multi-part interview series — I think that would have really helped Bray bring out that character even more. And we could see that real sick, sadistic side of that Bray Wyatt character. But everything he touched was gold, guys.

“And just an incredible guy, a guy that is missed every single day by everybody in our company. And man, I still wish he was here.”

Wyatt tragically passed away on August 24, 2023, at the age of 36 due to a heart condition. Nearly three years later, his influence continues to be felt throughout WWE, with Cole’s comments serving as another reminder of the lasting impact the former world champion had both on-screen and behind the scenes.

Michael Cole can be heard calling the action for WWE Raw on Netflix every Monday night at 8/7c. Make sure to join us here at WrestlingHeadlines.com every Monday evening for live WWE Raw Results coverage.