WWE and AEW Stars Who Need to Turn Babyface in 2021
Everyone loves a great villain, but too many of them on a roster leads to an imbalance where there's too few heroes left to root for and no journey to get invested in.
Both AEW and WWE have had a tendency to weigh more heavily on the heels as they're easier to write for and act as the driving force for storylines, but not everyone can be the bad guy.
To counter our list of babyfaces who should turn heel over the course of the next year, it's time to flip the script and talk about the wrestlers who should see the light and become fan favorites.
Here are some of the heels in All Elite Wrestling and WWE who should turn babyface in 2021.
Alexa Bliss and Bray Wyatt
1 of 10
Bray Wyatt's feud with Randy Orton does not mean he's turned babyface already. Heels fight other heels all the time, and his actions prove he's yet to go down a more noble path.
Alexa Bliss has stayed firmly heel, too, in her opposition to Nikki Cross. Cross was just looking out for her friend, while Bliss broke her mug, turned her back on her and played on her feelings for a victory.
But Wyatt and Bliss take much inspiration from the Batman characters Joker and Harley Quinn. Bliss has dressed as the character on more than one occasion, and it is the basis of her logo.
Fans of the DC Universe know all too well Joker and Quinn are too beloved not to be cheered in some fashion.
In fact, DC has spent the past decade or so steering Quinn into a more babyface role. She's had her own fantastic television series and a Birds of Prey film where she's the protagonist, and she's the lovable fun one on the Suicide Squad.
The character of Punchline was even created seemingly to be her heel replacement in the comics while Quinn transitions to a full-blown hero, which is what Bliss will eventually grow into.
The more people gravitate toward these characters, the more WWE will be fighting an uphill battle trying to get fans to boo them.
Eventually, when fans are back in attendance, the cheers will be loud enough that they'll have to be put up against heels.
Most Members of Dark Order
2 of 10
Brodie Lee's death clearly has a far wider impact than the future of The Dark Order. The tributes from fellow wrestlers after his death show that. But Lee's importance to the group's direction can't be overstated either.
After struggling to get over in its first year, Dark Order really came into its own in 2020 when Lee took charge and demanded a higher success rate of its members.
Eventually, Lee's no-nonsense demeanor clashed with the sillier members of the crew after they began showcasing more of their comedic sides on Being the Elite and tapped into the true essence of the faction: they are losers.
Alex Reynolds attempting to recruit new members to literally drink Kool-Aid and John Silver just being himself has been fantastic to watch. Then, they just happen to also work well in the ring as a team.
Colt Cabana has always been more comedic than serious. Evil Uno seems to have a lot of fun showing off his more humorous side.
Others like Preston Vance and Alan Angels don't necessarily need to follow suit, but at the very least, Silver, Reynolds and Cabana should play to their strengths and exhibit these characters on Dynamite.
The group no longer has a powerful leader who could be taken seriously, and shoving someone else into that role as Lee's replacement would be a tough act to follow and likely wouldn't be received well.
Reckoning (aka Mia Yim)
3 of 10
There was nothing wrong with Mia Yim that needed to be fixed for her to join the main roster, but WWE tried to repackage her as Reckoning.
Unfortunately, even for someone as talented as she is, her run on Raw has been a total failure and not at all her fault.
Retribution has been terrible since the start and doesn't seem to be getting any better. In particular, Reckoning has had the worst run out of everyone in the group.
For months, she didn't wrestle and wasn't paired with anyone in the women's division to work against. All she did was stand by and watch the men in the group fight.
Once she started getting in the ring, WWE gave her a terrible directive to fake a seizure, had her lose some matches and be chewed out by Mustafa Ali, and she even lost her mask unintentionally.
It's time to abandon ship. If the group isn't going to disband entirely to allow everyone to do their own thing and actually succeed, Yim should at least leave the faction, wait a few weeks or months for people to forget about it and just be herself again.
Yim as a babyface is likable, tough and has a charisma different than most of the roster, while Reckoning is just a waste of talent.
The IIconics: Billie Kay and Peyton Royce
4 of 10
The more time passes, the goofier Billie Kay and Peyton Royce get. As they get sillier, the easier it is to imagine them as babyfaces.
By now, fans have gotten used to their act, and it isn't as ear-grating as it used to be.
In fact, since splitting and going to separate rosters, it's been sad to see them struggle to find themselves again.
Kay has taken to handing out her resume to anyone and everyone, which is more endearing and funny rather than annoying. Royce has been paired with Lacey Evans, but they clearly don't get along.
If not just to try something different and see if there's magic, The IIconics should reform and go for a babyface run with the Women's Tag Team Championships.
At worst, if it goes over like a lead balloon, they can go back to being irritating heels, but at least they'll have tried.
Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager
5 of 10
As soon as MJF joined The Inner Circle, the writing's been on the wall of a coup to come.
He's already planted seeds for the faction's implosion and made an enemy out of Sammy Guevara, while Wardlow and Jake Hager can't stop staring at each other.
Chris Jericho's been only barely able to keep them together. Sooner or later, a civil war will erupt.
As Jericho is a legend who already has fans singing his song during his entrance, he should undoubtedly be the babyface feuding with MJF.
Guevara and Hager should follow suit and stay true to him, while Santana, Ortiz and Wardlow can stick by MJF, who may even recruit more to the group once it is in his control.
Hager can put over Wardlow, Guevara can try his hands out as a babyface (which he has yet to do in AEW), and it will freshen up their characters while giving MJF some noteworthy stars to work with.
The Hurt Business
6 of 10
The Hurt Business are too cool for their own good. Dressing the way they do, acting as cocky as they act and actually getting the job done makes them hard to dislike.
Even when they're bullying people backstage, it's done with a sense of humor that makes it entertaining.
Throughout much of 2020, The Hurt Business feuded with Ricochet, Mustafa Ali, Cedric Alexander (until he joined the group) and Apollo Crews. They were definitive heels, without question.
But they also stood up to Retribution and showed they have more of a moral code than originally expected.
In doing so, The Hurt Business looked like the biggest babyfaces on the roster when they defended the brand against Retribution's attacks, and it can be looked at as a proof of concept that they can work as babyfaces.
Far enough into 2021 when they've exhausted their feuds against the other faces on the roster, it would be fun for them to switch it up and start fighting on the side of good.
Braun Strowman
7 of 10
It seems WWE has three go-to modes for Braun Strowman: the monster heel, the unstoppable babyface and the comedic giant.
The Monster Among Men tapped into all three in 2020, but his biggest successes came while he was one of the good guys.
Typically, as a heel, WWE tends to book him quite strong until he fights someone who actually matters. Then, when up against a champion or in an important match with stakes, he comes up short.
After he returns from his injury hiatus, Strowman should stay heel long enough to have a program with Drew McIntyre and possibly finish his feud with Keith Lee. After that, what else is there for him to do as a heel?
Should Raw Underground return, it would be more interesting for Strowman to be the babyface who steamrolls the competition and is the biggest challenger for someone like Dabba-Kato.
At the very least, Strowman seems to enjoy having some fun, and he can't do that while he's a stoic heel who does nothing but powerslams and yelling. Being a babyface expands his horizons and allows him to explore more character depth.
Sonya Deville
8 of 10
Sonya Deville was doing some great heel work before taking a leave of absence, but it will be difficult to boo her upon her return.
Deville has been on a break since a man was arrested at her home in October on charges of aggravated stalking, armed burglary of a dwelling, attempted armed kidnapping and criminal mischief.
It would feel good to be able to cheer her on, and she has displayed on her Damandyz Donutz adventures with Mandy Rose that she has too likable a personality to overlook. Coming out of this strife, she will make for an even better babyface.
It would also be nice to have a Superstar with some MMA experience fight as a babyface on the roster, as Shayna Baszler, Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir have perpetually stayed villainous.
WWE has also yet to explore her potential as a representative of the LGBTQ+ community. There's no telling how positive that could be for her, the company and her fans if she were presented as one of the biggest heroes who happened to also be a champion for that community.
Miro
9 of 10
What exactly is Miro's character in AEW? In such a short time, he's been all over the place with no clear direction.
He's positioned as a heel, yet if he weren't attacking babyfaces, nothing else would indicate that.
Being into video games and having a Twitch account where he interacts with his fans is far from a villainous thing to do, and his choice of attire doesn't scream "evil bad guy" either.
Kip Sabian gives off a pompous vibe, while Miro is just a brute who stands beside him. There needs to be something more to him.
If Miro doesn't want to develop more heel-like traits and just stick with the Twitch gamer gimmick, he might as well turn babyface.
There already are enough monster heels on the roster with Lance Archer, Powerhouse Hobbs, Brian Cage and more, so Miro could be a babyface variant.
Honorable Mentions
10 of 10
Rounding out this list are some performers who may not have as strong of a case to argue but are worth thinking about as potential babyfaces in 2021.
When Seth Rollins returns from paternity leave, it's possible becoming a father will have changed him. After a full year of his messiah gimmick that saw him mostly only feud with two people, rehashing the same shtick and looking for new disciples to recruit will feel like a step backward.
Tucker Knight never got anything out of turning on Otis and costing him the Money in the Bank briefcase. Since then, he's just been a jobber heel on Raw. What's stopping WWE from making him a jobber babyface when need be? It will probably happen.
Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura have done about all they can with their heel characters. They've been coasting on autopilot for months, and since they're still beloved by the WWE Universe, they can make for great babyfaces to put other fresher, hotter heels over.
Finally, for AEW, Team Taz doesn't need both Brian Cage and Powerhouse Hobbs. Ricky Starks is too good of a heel to turn face any time soon and Hobbs is the fresher heel who could use a mouthpiece, but Cage can hang just fine on his own.
Perhaps sometime in 2021, Cage can break free from the faction and start a babyface run in opposition to his former teammates. He'd make for a great opponent for Kenny Omega, too, as well as the monster heels on the brand.
Anthony Mango is the owner of the wrestling website Smark Out Moment and the host of the podcast show Smack Talk on YouTube, iTunes and Stitcher. You can follow him on Facebook and elsewhere for more.
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