Reuniting always feels so good. Especially in WWE.
The global leader in sports entertainment is no stranger to hosting familiar faces after they leave the company. These returns actually become part of the draw. Fans get so used to seeing certain marquee headliners weekly. When they do leave for other endeavors or retirement, that absence increases interest in watching them inside the ropes once more.
Go ahead and name an iconic wrestler who left WWE, either permanently or just while taking a break. From The Rock and John Cena to The Undertaker and Kane, the wait for their prospective returns took on a life of its own.
Given the number of legendary reunions the WWE has hosted over the years, we thought it'd be a good time to take a look at some of the most iconic. Whether they were planned well in advance and known to the public or a secret as part of a twist ending, all of these moments are tattooed to memory for diehard pro wrestling fans.
Priority for this list will be given to the returns that actually caught us off-guard. This is a roundabout way of saying none of The Rock's highly anticipated, famously predictable returns will be making the cut.
The Undertaker, Judgement Day (May 2000)
Few WWE members are as recognizable as The Undertaker. He was a brand unto himself. Adults of a certain age most definitely had some version of his action figure, and it was most likely that one that played his infamous entrance music when swiping the medal plates on his fate across a compatible titan tron.
Back in 2000, The Undertaker had been on the shelf for around eight months with a torn pec. During the waning moments of an hour-long iron man match main event between The Rock and Triple H at the pay-per-view event Judgment Day, he returned in a way that's still talked about decades later.
Riding down the entrance ramp in Harley, The Undertaker sent fans into a feeding frenzy. As ESPN's Sean Coyle would later note, this reemergence marked the beginning of The Undertaker's "American Badass" persona interregnum. It wouldn't last long, as he returned to his tried and true "The Deadman" character by 2004. But it was a special period all the same.
Triple H - RAW (January 2002)
Though high-profile returns were often saved for pay-per-view events, the sudden appearances at RAW or SmackDown are some of the most memorable.
It is easier to disarm fans, both in the arena and at home, with these returns. Something seismic is supposed to happen at a pay-per-view event. The weekly cards are more standard. They set up and play out the lion's share of storylines needed to make riveting pay-per-view events.
Not surprisingly, Triple H, of all people, delivered one of the most easy-to-recount returns at RAW. The superstar had been recovering from a torn left quad he suffered during a 2001 match...that he finished, because of course he finished it. Once he was ready to rock, the company thought it would behoove him to return at Madison Square Garden, the arena in New York City that hosted the first-ever WrestleMania.
Despite playing the part of a widely loathed heel at the time of his quad injury, Triple returned to a thundering applause in front of the MSG crowd. What's more, this reemergence served as the then-up-and-comer's path to securing the main event at WrestleMania 18 later that year, alongside Chris Jericho himself.
John Cena - Royal Rumble (January 2008)
John Cena is arguably on Mt. Rushmore of WWE superstars. This is to say, keeping his 2008 return a secret was considered a no-go. Mind you, this is largely because it wasn't supposed to take place. Not this soon anyway.
At the time, Cena was nursing a torn pectoral muscle. In the WWE space, this is an injury that usually guarantees a five- or six-month absence. Heck, depending on the severity of the tear and whether surgery is required, it can often be much longer. Cody Rhodes missed more than seven months after having surgery on a torn pectoral in 2022.
Cena is apparently his own species, though. He returned at the Royal Rumble in 2008 less than four months removed from his pec tear. That is absolutely bonkers. Unbelievable, even. Almost 20 years later, it still sounds like a folktale. You want to know what US sportsbook is the best? Try to find out who had it pegged ahead of time that Cena would come out at #30, since nobody saw that coming.
Suffice it to say, the Madison Square Garden fans attending the event were beyond shocked. Cena made his return in surprising fashion on the final entrant, immediately racked up four eliminations, including that of Triple H, and won the event.
CM Punk - Survivor Series (November 2023)
CM Punk's path back to WWE in 2023 was long and winding. He initially left the company in 2014 while battling injuries and burnout galore. Still, he continued to sprinkle in a few guest appearances, which led many to believe he'd eventually return.
And return he did. Just not how many expected.
After spending the better part of the decade away from the sport, CM Punk joined AEW, which he called home for two years. Just a few months following that stint, though, he rejoined the WWE at the Survivor Series: WarGames in his hometown of Chicago.
The return was handled perfectly. While speculation had run rampant, WarGames appeared to be cutting out for the evening. Just when you thought it was over, CM Punk's Cult of Personality music hit, and the fans in attendance went truly bananas.
This return is doubly sweet because it's among the ones that didn't act as a goodbye. At the age of 47, CM Punk is still with the WWE today. And it is this return that set the stage with some of the sport's most iconic rivalries in recent vintage, including his storylines opposite Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre.
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