WWE: Wade Barrett Says The WWE Took Away His Passion For Wrestling

I've got some bad news for Wade Barrett fans. It appears the former Nexus leader is completely happy with his life outside of the WWE. Recently, Barrett (real name Stu Bennett) spoke to Sports Illustrated about his time in and out of the WWE. Barrett cited the lack of creative control over his character during his 2015 run as "King Barrett" as what ultimately caused him to lose his passion for being a WWE superstar.

"I've had a lifelong passion, and really obsession, with professional wrestling since I was a very small kid. That passion never left me. I was always inspired to be involved and be part of good TV and do projects that would inspire me professionally. Unfortunately, in 2015 and again in 2016, I was asked to play a character and perform storylines that I found thoroughly uninspiring. After making repeated attempts to change my career trajectory and having those efforts turned down, my passion for playing the role of a WWE Superstar went away."

"'Bad News' Barrett was a really fun time. The reactions from the crowd I was getting were really about my speaking and my portrayal of a character rather than my in-ring work. You can even go back to the Nexus era, when I was cutting promos every single night. People were really hanging on my every word, and I was really dictating a lot of the shows that we were doing. I've always had that confidence in my performance ability and my ability to speak in character. One of the most exciting parts of the Nexus and 'Bad News' Barrett eras were I had a lot of influence in the character and I had a lot of influence in how I was going to portray myself. When I became King Barrett, the influence I had in the character was taken away. I was told, 'This is your outfit, and here is your promo that you have to say word-for-word.' Any time I tried to tweak the storyline because I thought it wasn't working, or because it wasn't me, I was denied. The lack of control over my career reduced my passion more than anything.

"For the first time in my life, I was questioning why I was even getting out of bed and going to work. I wasn't enjoying it and it wasn't motivating me at all. For that reason, I made the decision that I couldn't re-sign a contract and continue for three more years when I knew nothing was going to change. My choice was: to take the paycheck and accept that I was probably going to get the same kind of creative that I'd had for the last couple of years, or alternatively to walk away and look for something else. So I decided to do the latter. I've always been smart with my money, and I saved a lot during my time with WWE. I'm not in a position where I'm living paycheck-to-paycheck, and I can afford to explore other avenues."

Barrett joins other recently released superstars, Ryback and Cody Rhodes, who have been critical of the WWE since their departure. Do you think the WWE should have done more with Wade Barrett?

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