AEW has risen to the top of the wrestling world, in large part, due to its massively talented roster. The roster is very diverse with homegrown AEW talent like Hook and Wardlow who have only begun to establish themselves as superstars, while others like Sting and CM Punk are virtually the character they've been their entire careers.
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Although many current AEW wrestlers spent time at other wrestling promotions, many of them have built out completely new personas and tremendous new chapters to their established careers. This list examines 10 of those superstars, the ones who are completely different at promotions outside of AEW.
10 Jon Moxley
One of the biggest AEW superstars was also once at the top of the WWE roster. It's fair to say that Jon Moxley is the monster Dean Ambrose created. Whereas Moxley is now a bruting force inside and outside the ring and presents as a genuine beast, Dean Ambrose was sometimes strange, sometimes serious, and sometimes a germaphobe (for some reason).
Moxley's transformation from Ambrose has been one of the best transformations of a wrestler and the current Interim AEW Champion will likely never revert away from his current self as he's become one of the most respected wrestlers in the business.
9 Orange Cassidy
Orange Cassidy has only found success thanks to AEW allowing his strange wrestling gimmick to thrive. The man in denim has become one of the most beloved stars in AEW, but he didn't enter the wrestling world as "the guy that fights with his hands in his pockets."
Cassidy first establishes himself in the wrestling world as "Fire Ant." He was in an Ant-themed faction called The Colony. As Fire Ant, he wrestled at Chikara (where he won various titles) for over a decade before arriving at AEW.
8 Billy Gunn
Fans who are younger than the WWE Spinner belt, might not know that Billy Gunn once had a strange gimmick where he was the "Assman." In retrospect, it's an insane idea, but Billy Gunn lived it to the fullest. His entrance song said the name "Ass" more than a 2022 twirk song.
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Billy Gunn also received a failed solo push as "Ass Man." He joined D-generation X in 1998 and become pretty much the Billy Gunn he's been ever since (excluding his stint with Billy and Chuck).
7 Bryan Danielson
Although Bryan Danielson is a little different from the WWE's Daniel Bryan, his strangest persona was portrayed early in Danielson's career. After training under Shawn Michaels's wrestling school, Danielson wrestled at Memphis Championship Wrestling as a masked wrestler named "American Dragon."
His days as a masked wrestler prove he was destined to be one of the best wrestlers on any roster, but to imagine him competing in a mask today is a big no-go.
6 Eddie Kingston
Eddie Kingston has become a big name in wrestling thanks to his time in AEW. His rise to stardom did not come easily for Kingston as he's been in the industry for over two decades. For the most part, Kingston has essentially been the "gritty Kingston" fans know today but did have one known strange gimmick in his early years.
In an infamous picture, Kingston is dressed like a wrestling manager from the early 80s. Considering his recent heat with Cesaro, it seems unlikely "goofy Kingston" will ever be resurrected in AEW.
5 Brandon Cutler
Although he's become well known for his time with The Elite, Cutler spent many years in the indies before arriving at AEW. One of his most well-known gimmicks was "Ronnie Tsunami." He was in a tag team with Dustin Cutler as "The Tsunamis." He spent time mostly in the California wrestling circuit under this gimmick until leaving the wrestling business in 2011. He eventually returned in 2018 and joined AEW in 2019.
4 Dustin Rhodes
One of the most well-known wrestlers in AEW who was completely different before he arrived is Dustin Rhodes. As Goldust, Rhodes was one of the biggest names in the WWE and, in retrospect, deserved a world title run with the company.
Goldust was bizarre and often way over the top, but always entertaining. Dustin Rhodes in AEW is a much more grounded character who put on some of his best work with his brother Cody, who departed for the WWE in 2022.
3 Wheeler Yuta
Wheeler Yuta has quietly risen in AEW and seems to be positioned to be a big name in ROH at the very minimum. Early in his career, Yuta wrestled under the name Sylverhawk at Chikara where he was once won the Young Lions Cup Championship.
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At Chikara, Yuta was a masked wrestler but dropped the gimmick when he arrived to ROH in 2020.
2 Luchasaurus
Luchasaurus's run with Jungle Boy has been one of the most unlikely pairings in all of AEW. The two became AEW Tag team champions and it's fair to say Luchasaurus is an established name at the company. Before arriving to AEW, he wrestled in the early days of NXT as "Judas Devlin."
He had little success in NXT and then competed in the indies for a few years. He establishes his Luchasaurus three years after leaving NXT and has risen with the gimmick ever since.
1 Jay Lethal
Jay Lethal is one of the few wrestling veterans at AEW to never compete in the WWE. Jay Lethal is most remembered for his time in TNA where he adapted various gimmicks. His "Black Machismo" is way different from his current identity in AEW.
This impersonation of Randy Savage seems like it would've flopped, but Lethal played the gimmick so well that it actually helped launch his career to new heights. TNA fans ate it up. A year after adopting the gimmick, Letha would win his first (out of six) TNA X-Division Championships.
