Rey Mysterio once paid tribute to a 1996 superhero movie that didn’t do so well in theatres.
Mysterio has drawn inspiration from various comic book characters over the years for his in-ring attire. He paid tributes to superhero characters like Spider-Man, Batman, Captain America, and several others with his in-ring gear. WWE even once received a cease and desist letter from Marvel for trademark infringement.
Fans likely remember these well-known Rey Mysterio tributes, but one lesser-known tribute came on the night he paid homage to the 1996 superhero film, The Phantom. Mysterio wore the attire at WCW Halloween Havoc 1997 for his match against Eddie Guerrero.
Rey Mysterio’s match with Guerrero saw Rey wear a full purple bodysuit that featured sublimated muscles and question marks, which mimicked the movie’s primary costume.
It could be said that the match made more of an impact than the movie did. The match is widely regarded as one of the best in WCW history. However, the Simon Wincer-directed movie, which featured Billy Zane as Kit Walker / Phantom, unfortunately bombed in theaters. The Phantom grossed around $17.3 million against a budget of $45 million. However, it did develop a cult following on home video.
Rey Mysterio Commented On Receiving A Cease And Desist Letter From Marvel
During an interview with Adrian Hernandez earlier this year, Rey Mysterio recalled when WWE stopped him from wearing Marvel-style attire over facing potential legal action.
“Actually, WWE had to shut me down for a minute because I was getting too exaggerated. I was like, ‘It’s my logo! I’m just using their colors, you know? And maybe Captain America, maybe a star here, the gloves…’ but I don’t change anything with this outfit.” Rey Mysterio said.
“I have a pretty dope idea that I want to put into work. I’m hoping I’ll be able to bust it out. But overall, it’s always been inspirational. When I did the first one, I was in AAA, and I did a Superman outfit.”
“Back in the day, I used to wear tights with trunks over them,” continued Rey Mysterio. “And the logo on the trunks had the Superman emblem with a question mark in the colors. I even wore a little red cape! So people got what I was trying to do.”
“Then came Batman, then Spider-Man—I just carried that with me to WWE until they told me, ‘Hey, maybe you gotta stop a little bit because we’re getting cease and desist letters from them.’”
