Danhausen has arrived in WWE, and no one knows what to think.
The demonic star – who is very nice, very evil and has described himself as ‘Conan O’Brien possessed by a demon’ – left rivals All Elite Wrestling (AEW) just 24 hours before making his surprise debut from the mysterious crate at Elimination Chamber.
Following CM Punk’s win over Finn Balor to retain the World Heavyweight Title, the time came for the contents of the wooden box to finally be revealed.
Flanked by Raw and SmackDown general managers Adam Pearce and Nick Aldis, the crate opened with a coffin inside.
What followed was a fever dream in the best way, with dancers and Danhausen himself in the trademark black and white face paint.
The spooky and silly Munsters-style theme music blared out as the kooky crew made their way to the ring.
Danhausen told everyone they were cursed, dropped off a jar of human teeth in front of Michael Cole, hopped in the ring, got a bit of pyro, and then vanished into the night.
Despite an initial cheer from fans when his name appeared on the stage, there were some boos once the lights dropped and the segment came to an end.
The crowd seemed utterly baffled, but WWE boss Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque insisted the follow-up would be a ‘blast’ when he appeared on the post-show.
‘They’re cartooning him up, good! He’s not like anyone else. Danhausen needs to be as outlandish as possible,’ wrote fan AewDefender on X.
‘The ending was a little anti climactic, but his presentation is amazing. The fact he’s not in NXT means The WWE is high on him.’
Others called his entrance and debut the ‘greatest’ of all time, and the consensus seems to be that he’ll be a hit in WWE once the audience gets to know him.
‘Danhausen rocks up with some baddies, gives commentary some teeth(?) and then dips. 10/10 no notes,’ quipped @Electrifyyy, while @mollo24 added: ‘Whatever you think of Danhausen WWE are going to make a boat load of money off of him 🤣🤣🤣’
Over on the official WWEShop, the listing for the new star’s first t-shirt gives a hint of what to expect.
‘YOU. ARE. CURSED! On an evening where the WWE Superstars took unforgettable risks inside the Elimination Chamber, the raucous Chicago crowd is sure not to forget the debut of the very nice, very evil Danhausen,’ the page reads.
‘Show that you’re eager to see who the unsettling enigma brings bad fortune to next by grabbing this Cursed! T-Shirt. The stylised Superstar graphics printed across the front and back make it clear that anyone who crosses Danhausen is bound to get a wide-eyed curse for their troubles.’
Who is Danhausen after WWE Elimination Chamber debut?
The journey to WWE has been a long one for Danhausen, who started his wrestling career shortly before Halloween in 2013.
After building a huge fanbase on the independent scene, the spooky character – who based his unique voice on late-night legend Conan O’Brien – finally got a worldwide stage when he signed with All Elite Wrestling in 2022.
Unfortunately, things took a turn when he found himself off AEW TV in 2024 and 2025, and by last summer he’d requested his release from Tony Khan’s promotion.
It wasn’t granted, and his contract was actually extended due to time missed on the injury shelf, but by the beginning of the year, there was speculation he could be WWE-bound.
The real-life friend of CM Punk officially left AEW at the end of February, and a day later, he was the talk of Elimination Chamber.
What else happened at WWE Elimination Chamber?
In the opening match of the night, Rhea Ripley booked her ticket to WrestleMania as she won the Women’s Elimination Chamber match to secure a WWE Women’s Title shot against Jade Cargill.
She pinned Tiffany Stratton after a Riptide to land the win, after the former champ had eliminated the crowd’s favourite Raquel Rodriguez, who scored a dominant double pin on Kiana James and Asuka, a few minutes after Alexa Bliss was the first to go.
In the second match of the night, AJ Lee made her first singles match in 11 years count as she dethroned Becky Lynch to become Intercontinental Champion with less than two months until WrestleMania.
She reappeared after the next bout to celebrate with her husband, CM Punk, who overcame Finn Balor in a fantastic wrestling match to retain the World Heavyweight Title and secure a dream match against Roman Reigns next month in Las Vegas.
The main event last night was utter chaos, with Logan Paul dominating the Men’s Elimination Chamber, taking out Je’Von Evans, LA Knight, and Trick Williams before the masked man attacked, and Cody Rhodes capitalised.
The mysterious intruder unmasked to reveal himself as Seth Rollins, while there was more drama to come as Drew McIntyre clocked Rhodes with the WWE Title belt, only to be met with an RKO and Cross Rhodes for his trouble.
Orton immediately dropped the American Nightmare with an RKO, too, making himself the number one contender to McIntyre’s WWE Championship.
However, an enraged Nick Aldis announced on the post-show that Rhodes will get a world title shot against the Scottish Warrior on SmackDown later this week, which could lead to a Fatal 4-Way at WrestleMania if Jacob Fatu makes his presence felt.
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