John Randall Hennigan (born October 3, 1979) is an American

professional wrestler Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

and actor, better known by the

ring name A ring name is a type of stage name used by an athlete such as a professional wrestler, mixed martial artist, or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting ...

John Morrison. He is best known for his time in

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

Impact Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promot ...

and

Lucha Underground Lucha Underground was an American professional wrestling promotion founded in 2014 by United Artists Media Group. Partly owned by Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA), ''Lucha Underground'' also refers to its weekly television program, which featured c ...

. Hennigan currently makes appearances for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide as Johnny Caballero, as well as the

independent circuit In professional wrestling, the independent circuit or indie circuit is the collective noun, collective name of independent professional wrestling promotions which are smaller than major televised promotions. It is roughly analogous to a minor lea ...

under various ring names. After winning '' Tough Enough III'' (a WWE

reality TV Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

competition show that awarded winners a wrestling contract with the company), Hennigan was assigned to its

developmental territory In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team, feeder club, or nursery club is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher ...

Ohio Valley Wrestling Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) is an American professional wrestling promotion and former developmental promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. The company is currently run by Al Snow and Matt Jones and Louisville mayor elect, Craig Greenberg. O ...

. WWE promoted Hennigan to its

SmackDown! ''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes simulc ...

roster in April 2005 under the ring name Johnny Nitro; winning the

WWE Tag Team Championship WWE (formerly the WWF, the WWWF, and Capitol Wrestling) has maintained at least one primary tag team championship for its male performers since 1958 (except for a two year interim between 1967 and 1969). During periods of brand division, separate ...

with Joey Mercury in his first match on the show. Hennigan has also held main event roles in several promotions outside of WWE, including ''

lucha libre Lucha libre (, meaning "freestyle wrestling" or literally translated as "free fight") is the term used in Latin America for professional wrestling. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has developed into a unique form ...

'' promotions

and Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide as Johnny Mundo, and in

as Johnny Impact. Hennigan has won the ECW World Championship, AAA Mega Championship,

Impact World Championship The Impact World Championship is a professional wrestling Professional wrestling championship#World championships, world championship created and promoted by Impact Wrestling. It is the promotion's principal championship. Like most professional w ...

, and

Lucha Underground Championship The Lucha Underground Championship was a professional wrestling world championship owned by the Lucha Underground. The championship is the top championship of the promotion and is generally contested in professional wrestling matches, in which p ...

once each. In WWE, he also held the Intercontinental Championship three times, and was a six-time tag team champion. In ''lucha libre'', Hennigan was a central fixture in all four seasons of

, and was AAA's first-ever triple champion, holding the AAA Mega Championship,

AAA Latin American Championship The AAA Latin American Championship (''Campeonato Latinoamericano AAA'' in Spanish) is a professional wrestling championship promoted by the Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA) promotion in Mexico. The championship is generally contested in profession ...

, and

AAA World Cruiserweight Championship The AAA World Cruiserweight Championship (Campeonato Mundial Crucero AAA in Spanish) is a professional wrestling championship contested for in the Mexican lucha libre promotion Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). The championship cannot be competed ...

simultaneously. He has headlined multiple major events for WWE and

Impact Impact may refer to: * Impact (mechanics), a high force or shock (mechanics) over a short time period * Impact, Texas, a town in Taylor County, Texas, US Science and technology * Impact crater, a meteor crater caused by an impact event * Impact ...

, including the latter company's flagship event, Bound for Glory, in

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

and

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

. Outside of wrestling, Hennigan has also worked in the film and television industry. In film, he has mainly worked as an actor, producer and stuntman. He also competed as a contestant on the 37th season of the competitive reality show ''

Survivor Survivor(s) may refer to: Actual survivors * *Last survivors of historical events Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Survivors, characters in the 1997 ''KKnD'' video-game series * ''The Survivors'', or the ''New Survivors Found ...

''.

Early life

John Randall Hennigan was born on October 3, 1979, in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, and grew up in Palos Verdes Peninsula, where he attended Palos Verdes Peninsula High School. He graduated from the

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The institut ...

in 2002, where he studied

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

and

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

Professional wrestling career

World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment/WWE (2002–2011)

''Tough Enough'' and Ohio Valley Wrestling (2002–2004)

After graduating college with a degree in film and geology and deciding that he did not want to pursue either path, Hennigan began his professional wrestling career training at the Supreme Pro Wrestling

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

. After failing his audition for ''Tough Enough 2'', a competition in which the winner earned a

World Wrestling Federation World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

(WWF) contract, he was accepted as a cast member for ''Tough Enough III'' in 2002, eventually becoming the co-winner with Matt Cappotelli. For winning, Hennigan was awarded a developmental contract and assigned to their

(OVW), to continue his training. Hennigan competed in

Acolytes Protection Agency The Acolytes Protection Agency (APA) was an American professional wrestling tag team who consisted of Bradshaw (John Layfield) and Faarooq (Ron Simmons). They wrestled for the American promotion World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment (WWF/E) b ...

's invitational Bar Room Brawl match on July 27, 2003, at

Vengeance Vengeance may refer to: *Vengeance (concept) or revenge, a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance Film * ''Vengeance'' (1930 film), action adventure film directed by Archie Mayo * ''Vengeance'' (1937 film) or ''W ...

. Hennigan and Cappotelli made an appearance on an episode of ''

Heat In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...

'' in January 2004, losing to Garrison Cade and Mark Jindrak. In March 2004, Hennigan, going by the ring name "Johnny Superstar", turned on Cappotelli, establishing himself as a

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower Human leg, leg. Structure To distribute the compressive for ...

MNM (2004–2006)

On the March 1, 2004 episode of ''

Raw Raw is an adjective usually describing: * Raw materials, basic materials from which products are manufactured or made * Raw food, uncooked food Raw or RAW may also refer to: Computing and electronics * .RAW, a proprietary mass spectrometry dat ...

'', Hennigan debuted on the main roster as a heel under the

"Johnny Blaze". His

gimmick A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand ou ...

was that he was the apprentice and assistant of the Raw

General Manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

Eric Bischoff Eric Aaron Bischoff (born May 27, 1955) is an American television producer, professional wrestling booker, and performer. He is best known for serving as Executive Producer and later Senior Vice President of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and ...

. The next week his name was changed to "Johnny Spade", and three weeks after that it was changed to "Johnny Nitro". The Nitro name, which finally stuck, was a reference to '' WCW Monday Nitro'', the flagship show of

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nation ...

(WCW) for which Bischoff had previously worked, using the ''Nitro'' theme as his ring entrance music. Nitro acted as Bischoff's apprentice and assistant until June, when he was sent back to OVW. To explain his departure, Nitro lost a match on the June 7 episode of ''Raw'' against Eugene, which carried the stipulation that upon his loss, he also lost his job, but was actually returned to OVW. Upon his return to OVW, Nitro was put into a

feud A feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one part ...

with Matt Cappotelli. During the course of the feud, Melina was brought into the company as Nitro's ex-girlfriend and an ally of Cappotelli, only to

turn Turn may refer to: Arts and entertainment Dance and sports * Turn (dance and gymnastics), rotation of the body * Turn (swimming), reversing direction at the end of a pool * Turn (professional wrestling), a transition between face and heel * Turn, ...

on him and side with Nitro. Not long after, Nitro and Melina were joined by Joey Mercury, forming the

stable A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals and livestock. There are many different types of stables in use today; the ...

MNM. MNM wrestled in OVW for around a year, holding the

OVW Southern Tag Team Championship The OVW Tag Team Championship formerly known as the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship is the tag team titles of Ohio Valley Wrestling. Created in 1997, the first champions were Nick Dinsmore and Flash Flanagan. There have been 177 reigns shared b ...

once, before losing the titles to Cappotelli and Johnny Jeter in January 2005. They were soon called up to the main

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

in April that same year. In their debut match on the main roster, MNM won the

from

Eddie Guerrero Eduardo Gory Guerrero Llanes (October 9, 1967 – November 13, 2005) was an American professional wrestler. He was a prominent member of the Guerrero wrestling family, being the son of first-generation wrestler Gory Guerrero. Eddie Guerrero is ...

and Rey Mysterio on the April 21 episode of ''

''. MNM held the titles for three months, having successful defenses against the teams of Guerrero and Mysterio, and Charlie Haas and Hardcore Holly on May 22 at Judgment Day, before dropping them to the Legion of Doom on July 24 at

The Great American Bash The Great American Bash is a professional wrestling event currently produced by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. Created by Dusty Rhodes, the event was established in 1985 and was originally produced by the National Wr ...

. They won the titles again on the October 28 episode of ''SmackDown!'' in a four-way match defeating Legion of Doom,

The Mexicools The Mexicools are a professional wrestling stable and tag team, that were signed to World Wrestling Entertainment's SmackDown! brand. The team consisted of three well-known Mexican wrestlers of the late 1990s: Super Crazy, Psicosis and Juventud ...

, and

William Regal Darren Kenneth Matthews (born 10 May 1968), better known by the ring name William Regal, is an English retired professional wrestler. He is known for his over 20 years spent in WWE, as both a performer and an on-screen authority, and for his ti ...

and Paul Burchill, but lost them to Rey Mysterio and

Batista Batista is a Spanish language, Spanish or Portuguese language, Portuguese surname. Notable persons with the name include: * Batista (footballer, born 1955), Brazilian football player * Dave Bautista, American actor and professional wrestler, also ...

on the December 16 episode of ''SmackDown!'' two days before Armageddon. Due to help from Mark Henry, MNM defeated Mysterio and Batista in a rematch on the December 30 episode of ''SmackDown!'' to win the championship for the third time. They began a rivalry with the team of Paul London and Brian Kendrick that lasted over three months, until they dropped the championship to London and Kendrick at

Judgment Day The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...

on May 21, 2006, with the storyline leading to Nitro and Melina suddenly

turning Turning is a machining process in which a cutting tool, typically a non-rotary tool bit, describes a helix toolpath by moving more or less linearly while the workpiece rotates. Usually the term "turning" is reserved for the generation of ...

on Mercury after the match, breaking up the group. Melina and Nitro left the SmackDown! brand by losing their jobs in

kayfabe In professional wrestling, kayfabe, as a noun, is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically the portrayal of competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants as being genuine and not staged. ...

Singles competition and championship success (2006–2007)

The next week, Nitro, along with Melina, debuted on the

brand in a loss to WWE Champion John Cena. Nitro was immediately placed in the Intercontinental Championship picture, and at

on June 25, he defeated champion

Shelton Benjamin Shelton James Benjamin (born July 9, 1975) is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under his real name. He is also known for his work in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) and Pro Wres ...

in a

triple threat match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

also involving Carlito to win the title. Nitro held the championship for four months, retaining against Jeff Hardy on September 17 at Unforgiven, before losing the title back to Hardy on the October 2 episode of ''Raw''. Nitro recaptured the Intercontinental Championship from Hardy on the November 6 episode of ''Raw'', but lost it back to Hardy on the following week's ''Raw''. Also around this time, Nitro entered into a partnership with rapper Kevin Federline, with the duo antagonizing and beginning a rivalry with WWE Champion John Cena. Federline was then, in storyline, trained by Nitro for a match with Cena, which he won after interference from Umaga. MNM reunited on the November 27 episode of ''Raw'' to accept an open challenge from The Hardys (Jeff Hardy and Matt Hardy) at December to Dismember on December 3, a match that they lost. MNM and The Hardys feuded across the

brands A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

throughout the month, with the two teams competing in a four-way

ladder match A ladder match is a type of match in professional wrestling, most commonly one in which an item (usually a title belt) is hung above the ring, and the winner is the contestant who climbs a ladder and retrieves the item. The ladder itself becom ...

for the WWE Tag Team Championship at Armageddon on December 17 also involving Brian Kendrick and Paul London and Dave Taylor and

, which MNM failed to win. Nitro challenged Jeff Hardy for the Intercontinental Championship in a steel cage match at

New Year's Revolution WWE New Year's Revolution was a professional wrestling event produced by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. The event was created in 2005 and its name was a play on the Western tradition of New Year's resolutions, bei ...

on January 7, 2007, but lost. MNM lost to The Hardys at the Royal Rumble on January 28, and again at No Way Out on February 18, which ended the feud. MNM disbanded as a team when Mercury was released from WWE in March 2007. After Mercury's departure, Nitro also ended his association with Melina. Nitro was placed in a tag team with

Kenny Dykstra Kenneth George Doane (born March 16, 1986) is an American retired professional wrestler signed to WWE as a producer and as a trainer at the WWE Performance Center. During his past time in WWE, he was known as Kenny Dykstra and Kenny as a member ...

, until the 2007 WWE draft, during which Nitro was drafted to the

ECW ECW may refer to: Professional wrestling * Extreme Championship Wrestling (originally Eastern Championship Wrestling), a professional wrestling promotion that operated from 1992 to 2001 * The Alliance (professional wrestling) (originally the WCW/E ...

brand. Nitro made his debut for the brand on the June 19 episode of ''

'', with a win over

Nunzio James Maritato (born March 12, 1972) is an American professional wrestler, best known for his work in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) under the ring names Little Guido and Nunzio. A high-school footb ...

, and few days later, on June 24, at Vengeance: Night of Champions, he won the vacant ECW World Championship by defeating

CM Punk Phillip Jack Brooks (born October 26, 1978), better known by the ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler, sports commentator, actor, and retired mixed martial artist currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Best known for ...

, replacing the absent

Chris Benoit Christopher Michael Benoit (; May 21, 1967 – June 24, 2007) was a Canadian Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He worked for various pro-wrestling promotions during his 22-year career including most notably the WWE, World Wrestlin ...

due to his double-murder suicide. A few weeks after winning the title, Nitro was repackaged as John Morrison, a reference to musician Jim Morrison, to whom Hennigan bears a strong physical resemblance. Morrison retained the title against Punk at

on July 22, and on August 26 at SummerSlam. Punk would again challenge for the championship on the September 4 episode of ''ECW'', in which Morrison lost the championship to Punk, ending his reign at 69 days. Morrison was then suspended for thirty days for violating WWE's Wellness Program, renewing his feud with Punk upon his return, as well as competing against The Miz for the number one contendership to the title.

Teaming with The Miz (2007–2009)

Though rivals, Morrison and The Miz faced the dysfunctional tag team of Matt Hardy and Montel Vontavious Porter on the November 16 episode of ''SmackDown!'' for the WWE Tag Team Championship in a winning effort, marking Morrison's fourth WWE Tag Team Championship reign. At Survivor Series two days later, Morrison and The Miz were both defeated by CM Punk in a triple threat match for the

ECW Championship The ECW World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship originally used in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and later, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was the original world title of the ECW ...

. After the defeat, the rivalry aspect of Morrison and Miz's relationship faded, as they were now portrayed as trusting friends. Morrison competed in the 2008 Royal Rumble match on January 27, but failed to win after being eliminated by Kane. In February 2008, Morrison and Miz were given a

streaming Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...

segment on WWE.com named ''The Dirt Sheet'' in which they mocked other wrestlers and facets of pop culture. Morrison and Miz co-wrote each episode of ''The Dirt Sheet'' each week, and Morrison credits his time in college studying film with contributing to the success of the show. On March 30 at

WrestleMania XXIV WrestleMania XXIV was the 24th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) List of WWE pay-per-view events, event produced by WWE, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw (WWE bran ...

, Morrison competed in the

Money in the Bank ladder match The Money in the Bank ladder match is a multi-person ladder match held by the professional wrestling promotion WWE. First contested at WWE's annual WrestleMania event beginning in 2005, a separate Money in the Bank pay-per-view was established ...

, which was won by CM Punk. Despite being unsuccessful, Morrison had a standout performance in the match, in which he performed a moonsault from the top rope to the outside of the ring while holding onto a ladder. Morrison and Miz retained the titles against Kane and

on May 18 and Finlay and

Hornswoggle Dylan Mark Postl (born May 29, 1986) is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in WWE under the ring name Hornswoggle. He debuted in WWE in 2006, allied with Finlay. Hornswoggle won the Cruiserweight Championship in it ...

Night of Champions Night (also described as night time, unconventionally spelled as "nite") is the period of ambient darkness from sunset to sunrise during each 24-hour day, when the Sun is below the horizon. The exact time when night begins and ends depends o ...

on June 29, before dropping the titles to

Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder The Major Players are a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of Brian Myers and Matt Cardona. They currently appear in Impact Wrestling and the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), in which Myers is a former Impact Digital Media Champion an ...

on July 20 at

in a

fatal four-way match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

which also featured Jesse and Festus. Neither Morrison nor Miz were pinned, as Hawkins pinned Jesse to win the titles. Afterwards, they started a feud with Cryme Tyme (

JTG Jayson Anthony Paul (born December 10, 1984) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to the National Wrestling Alliance. He is best known for his time in WWE under the ring name JTG. Paul began his professional wrestling career in ...

and

Shad The Alosinae, or the shads,Alosinae

) through each team's Internet show, which then transitioned to matches on ''Raw'' and on October 26 at

Cyber Sunday WWE Cyber Sunday (originally known as WWE Taboo Tuesday) was an annual professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. Established in 2004, ...

. After winning the Slammy Award for Best WWE.com exclusive earlier in the day, Morrison and Miz won the "Tag Team of the Year" Slammy Award on December 8, 2008 episode of ''Raw''. On December 13, Morrison and Miz won the World Tag Team Championship from CM Punk and Kofi Kingston at a live event. Morrison and Miz engaged themselves in a feud with The Colóns (Carlito and

Primo Primo may refer to: People *DJ Premier (born 1966), hip-hop producer, sometimes goes by nickname Primo *Primo Carnera (1906–1967), Italian boxer, World Heavyweight champion 1933–1934 *Primo Cassarino (born 1956), enforcer for the Gambino cri ...

), who were the reigning WWE Tag Team Champions, which resulted in both teams defending their respective championships successfully in separate matches. Their feud culminated in a tag team lumberjack match where both titles were on the line at the

WrestleMania 25 WrestleMania 25 (also marketed as The 25th Anniversary of WrestleMania and written as WrestleMania 25th Anniversary) was the 25th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). ...

, but it was The Colóns who would unify the championships with a win. On April 13, as part of the

2009 WWE draft The 2009 World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) draft was the seventh WWE draft, produced by the American professional wrestling promotion World Wrestling Entertainment. The draft had two parts: the first part was televised live for three hours on A ...

, The Miz was drafted to the Raw brand to split up the team, and as a result, Miz attacked Morrison.

Intercontinental Champion (2009–2010)

On April 15, Morrison was drafted to the SmackDown brand as part of the 2009 Supplemental Draft. On the April 17 episode of ''SmackDown'', he defeated R-Truth. On the May 1 episode of ''SmackDown'', Morrison engaged in a backstage fight with Chris Jericho after Jericho slapped him, turning face in the process for the first time in his career. Later that same night, Morrison defeated

, beginning a feud between the two. On the May 7 episode of ''Superstars'', Morrison lost a match to Jericho after a distraction by Benjamin. Morrison continued to score victories over Benjamin in singles and tag team matches before defeating him on May 17 at

. During this time, Morrison would soon become wildly popular with fans. On the June 19 episode of ''SmackDown'', Morrison lost a critically acclaimed match against Edge, in which the commentators described it as a "third main event". On the July 31 episode of ''SmackDown'', Morrison had his first World Heavyweight Championship match against Jeff Hardy, but failed to win the title. On the September 4 episode of ''SmackDown'', Morrison defeated Rey Mysterio to win his third Intercontinental Championship. Morrison then began a feud with Dolph Ziggler, retaining the title against Ziggler on October 4 at Hell in a Cell, and again on the following episode of ''SmackDown''. The feud between Morrison and Ziggler continued throughout the next month, with the two wrestling to a double countout for the Intercontinental Championship on the November 13 episode of ''SmackDown'' and Morrison retaining the championship in a two-out-of-three falls match the following week to end the feud. At

Bragging Rights Boasting or bragging is speaking with excessive pride and self-satisfaction about one's achievements, possessions, or abilities. Boasting occurs when someone feels a sense of satisfaction or when someone feels that whatever occurred proves thei ...

on October 25, Morrison lost to his former tag team partner then- United States Champion The Miz in an interbrand Champion vs. Champion match. Their rivalry continued after both were announced as opposing team captains for Survivor Series on November 22, where Miz's team defeated Morrison's team. Morrison then went on to feud with newcomer Drew McIntyre, who defeated Morrison in a non-title match on the December 4 episode of ''SmackDown'', thus earning a championship opportunity against Morrison. At TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 13, Morrison lost the Intercontinental Championship to McIntyre, ending his reign at 103 days. Morrison later won an

Elimination Chamber The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was founded by Chris Jericho , created and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel st ...

qualifying match and participated in the

Elimination Chamber match The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE. The match was founded by Chris Jericho , created and introduced by Eric Bischoff in November 2002. It features a large chain-linked circular steel st ...

for the World Heavyweight Championship on February 21, 2010, but was eliminated by

The Undertaker Mark William Calaway (born March 24, 1965), better known by the ring name The Undertaker, is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Calaway spent the vast majority ...

. On the March 5 episode of ''SmackDown'', Morrison teamed with R-Truth to defeat Cryme Tyme and The Hart Dynasty to earn a Unified WWE Tag Team Championship match against

ShoMiz ShoMiz was a heel professional wrestling tag team consisting of Big Show and The Miz, which competed in the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) promotion. They were active in 2010 and won the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship, which was made by t ...

(

Big Show Paul Donald Wight II (born February 8, 1972) is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as an in-ring performer, and as a commentator for its web television show, '' AEW Dark: Elevation,'' under ...

and The Miz). At WrestleMania XXVI on March 28, they failed to win the championship.

Championship pursuits and departure (2010–2011)

On April 26, Morrison was drafted to the Raw brand as part of the

2010 WWE draft The 2010 World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) draft was the eighth WWE draft, produced by the American professional wrestling promotion World Wrestling Entertainment. The draft took place over two days: the first day was televised live for three h ...

, and lost his first match back for the brand later that night to Jack Swagger. In his final match on ''SmackDown'', he lost to Cody Rhodes. On June 1, Morrison announced that he would be mentoring Eli Cottonwood in the second season of ''

NXT NXT may refer to: Professional wrestling * ''WWE NXT'', a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that began in 2010 ** NXT (WWE brand), WWE's Florida-based brand and former developmental territory * ''NXT UK'', the British spin- ...

''. Cottonwood, however, was the second person eliminated from the competition, and was eliminated on the July 27 episode of ''NXT''. Morrison then went on to participate in the main event of SummerSlam on August 15, in which he and six teammates (John Cena, Edge, Chris Jericho,

Bret Hart Bret Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legend's contract. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling backgr ...

, R-Truth, and

Daniel Bryan Daniel Bryan may refer to: * Bryan Danielson (born 1981), American professional wrestler who formerly used the ring name "Daniel Bryan" * Dan Bryan (1900–1985), Irish soldier * Daniel Bryan (Big Brother), contestant on the British reality televi ...

) were victorious in a seven-on-seven elimination tag team match against The Nexus. In October, Morrison began a feud with Sheamus after he helped Santino Marella earn an upset win during a one-sided match against Sheamus. Within the following weeks, Morrison continued to save Marella from attacks by Sheamus. At Survivor Series on November 21, Morrison defeated Sheamus. Morrison entered the 2010 edition of the

King of the Ring tournament The King of the Ring tournament is a men's professional wrestling single-elimination tournament held periodically by WWE, a Connecticut-based professional wrestling promotion. Established in 1985, the winner of the inaugural tournament was Don Mu ...

, defeating Tyson Kidd, Cody Rhodes, and

Alberto Del Rio José Alberto Rodríguez Chucuan (born 25 May 1977) is a Mexican-American professional wrestler, professional wrestling promoter, sports commentator, and mixed martial artist, currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) as a c ...

but lost to Sheamus in the final round. He continued to feud with Sheamus and defeated him in a

WWE Championship The WWE Championship is a world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, representing the Raw brand division. It is one of two world titles on WWE's main roster, alongside SmackDown' ...

number one contender's ladder match at Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 19. Morrison received his WWE Championship match on the January 3, 2011 episode of ''Raw'', but lost to reigning champion The Miz in a

falls count anywhere match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

. Morrison participated in the Royal Rumble match at Royal Rumble on January 30, 2011 and despite not winning, he had a stand-out moment which was praised by critics as "arguably the spot of the decade" when Morrison was knocked off of the ring apron and performed a cat leap onto the barricade to avoid having his feet touch the floor and then went on to precision jump onto the ring steps and re-enter the ring. On February 20, Morrison participated in the Elimination Chamber match at

, but was eliminated by CM Punk. During the match, Morrison climbed to the top of the cage while inside the cage before dropping to deliver a crossbody on and eliminate Sheamus. At WrestleMania XXVII on April 3, Morrison, Trish Stratus and ''Jersey Shore'' guest star

Snooki Nicole Elizabeth LaValle (née Polizzi; born November 23, 1987), best known by her nickname Snooki, is an American reality television personality. She is best known for being a cast member of the MTV reality show ''Jersey Shore'' and starring ...

defeated Dolph Ziggler and

LayCool LayCool (sometimes stylized Lay-Cool) was a professional wrestling tag team consisting of Layla and Michelle McCool. The team worked for WWE and were featured primarily on the SmackDown brand but appeared on the Raw brand on some occasions, while ...

(

Layla "Layla" is a song written by Eric Clapton and Jim Gordon, originally recorded by Derek and the Dominos, as the thirteenth track from their only studio album, ''Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs'' (1970). Its contrasting movements were compose ...

and Michelle McCool) in a mixed tag team match. Morrison en Chile

On the April 11 episode of ''Raw'', Morrison participated in a five-man gauntlet match for the #1 contender's spot for the WWE Championship, but was eliminated by R-Truth. The next week on ''Raw'', Morrison challenged R-Truth to a match with the stipulation that if Morrison won, he would take Truth's place in the steel cage match at Extreme Rules. Truth accepted and lost the match, making Morrison the new #1 contender. After the match, Truth viciously attacked Morrison. At Extreme Rules on May 1, R-Truth interfered in the WWE Championship steel cage match, attacking Morrison to prevent him from winning the match. The next night on ''Raw'', Morrison was attacked by Truth again, prior to a scheduled match between the two which did not happen as a result. Morrison then underwent surgery to correct a legitimately pinched nerve in his neck. Morrison initially returned on the June 13 episode of ''Raw'', but Truth attacked him again prior to their scheduled match, re-injuring him. Morrison returned again on the July 25 episode of ''Raw'', attacking R-Truth. At SummerSlam on August 14, Morrison, Kofi Kingston and Rey Mysterio defeated R-Truth, Alberto Del Rio and The Miz. The following night on ''Raw'', Morrison defeated R-Truth in a falls count anywhere match to end their feud. At

on September 18, Morrison competed in a fatal four-way match for the United States Championship, also involving Alex Riley, Dolph Ziggler, and Jack Swagger, with Ziggler retaining his title. Morrison then challenged Cody Rhodes for the Intercontinental Championship at Hell in a Cell on October 2, but failed to win the title. Following this, Morrison went on a losing streak, lasting a number of weeks. On the November 7 episode of ''Raw'', Morrison picked up his first victory in three months, defeating United States Champion Dolph Ziggler in a non-title match. Morrison challenged Ziggler for the championship at Survivor Series on November 20 but lost. In his last advertised WWE appearance on the November 28 episode of ''Raw'', Morrison faced The Miz in a Falls Count Anywhere match; Miz won the match by delivering the Skull-Crushing Finale on the steel entrance stage, giving Morrison a

injury. This was used to write Morrison off television, even being stretchered out of the arena after the match. On November 29, WWE acknowledged the end of Morrison's contract, and moved his profile to the alumni section of its website. In a video published on December 9, 2011, via Hennigan's personal YouTube channel, Hennigan claimed that he was taking time off to heal and retrain for a possible return to wrestling in the future. In 2015, Hennigan revealed on Stone Cold Steve Austin's podcast that WWE wanted him to sign another multi-year contract, but due to a neck injury, residual pain, and creative frustrations, he decided to not renew his contract, wanting "more control over istime".

Independent circuit (2012–2019)

After leaving WWE, Hennigan began wrestling on the

under his real name, as well as his previous ring name John Morrison. On his first post-WWE wrestling appearance, Hennigan rekindled an old feud, facing off against

in the main event of the World Wrestling Fan Xperience (WWFX) Champions Showcase Tour in

Manila, Philippines Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...

on February 4, 2012. Hennigan won the match to become the inaugural WWFX Heavyweight Champion. On August 12, 2012, Hennigan appeared at Juggalo Championship Wrestling's Bloodymania 6 event, defeating Matt Hardy and Breyer Wellington in a three-way match. On January 25, 2013, Morrison appeared at Dragon Gate USA's Open the Golden Gate, defeating Akira Tozawa in the main event of the show. Hennigan took part in the WrestleMania weekend, wrestling for the Pro Wrestling Syndicate. On April 4, Hennigan defeated Elijah Burke and on April 5, Morrison defeated Japanese legend Jushin Thunder Liger in an "International Dream Match" at a Pro Wrestling Syndicate (PWS) event. Morrison 2016

On June 21, 2013, Hennigan defeated

Carlito Caribbean Cool Carlos Edwin Colón Jr. (born February 21, 1979) is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with WWE, under the ring name Carlito. He is currently making appearances for multiple promotions, including Qatar Pro Wrestlin ...

in FWE Welcome to the Rumble II, winning the FWE Heavyweight Championship.Namako, Jason (June 22, 2013
"6/21 FWE iPPV Results: Corona, New York (RVD, Striker) – Wrestleview.com"
wrestleview.com. The next day, Hennigan defended the title against Too Cold Scorpio at House of Hardcore 2. On October 12, 2013, at FWE Grand Prix, Hennigan defeated Matt Morgan, retaining the FWE Heavyweight Championship. On March 11, 2015, Hennigan lost the FWE Heavyweight Championship to

A.J. Styles Allen Neal Jones (born June 2, 1977), better known by his ring name AJ Styles (also stylized as A.J. Styles), is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. Regarded as one of the best ...

. On June 28, 2016, it was announced that Hennigan would make his debut for Pro Wrestling Guerilla in the company's annual Battle of Los Angeles tournament. He won his match against Matt Sydal in the first round, but was eliminated by

Ricochet A ricochet ( ; ) is a rebound, bounce, or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. Most ricochets are caused by accident and while the force of the deflection decelerates the projectile, it can still be energetic and almost ...

in the quarter-finals. On January 28, 2017, Morrison won a tournament at a

5 Star Wrestling 5 Star Wrestling (stylised as 5★ Wrestling) was a professional wrestling promotion based in Scotland. The company operated from 2015-2018 and promoted events throughout Great Britain and Ireland. They also produced a television series which was ...

event for the 5 Star Wrestling Championship, defeating

Moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult mal ...

, Drew Galloway, and Rey Mysterio to win the title. On February 8, 2018, he lost the title against

Jake Hager Donald Jacob Hager Jr. (born March 24, 1982) is an American professional wrestler and mixed martial artist, currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) under the ring name Jake Hager, where he is a member of the Jericho Appreciation Society st ...

after over a year as champion. On September 22, Morrison reunited with former MNM tag team partner Joey Mercury after ten years, defeating

Reno Scum Reno Scum are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of Adam Thornstowe and Luster the Legend. They are known for their work on the independent circuit and are best friends in real life, they are, however best known for their time ...

Lucha Underground (2014–2018)

In September 2014, it was reported that Hennigan had signed with the

El Rey El Rey, Spanish for The King, may refer to: Locations *El Rey Inn, Santa Fe, New Mexico *El Rey National Park in Argentina *El Rey Theatre, a live music venue in Los Angeles, California *El Rey archaeological site, a Mayan site in Cancun, Mexico ...

network's new television series, ''

'', where he wrestled under the ring name Johnny Mundo. Mundo wrestled in the main event of the debut episode of ''Lucha Underground'' on October 29, 2014, defeating Prince Puma and winning one hundred thousand dollars, which was then taken away from him by promoter Dario Cueto, setting up several feuds. He then teamed with Prince Puma during the November 5, 2014 episode, defeating

Cortez Castro Reyes Nunez (born August 28, 1978), better known by the ring name Ricky Reyes, is a Cuban-American professional wrestler. He is known for his appearances in Ring of Honor, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, World Wrestling Council, Lucha Underground and va ...

and Mr. Cisco. On the November 19 episode, Mundo defeated

Big Ryck Rycklon Stephens (born April 22, 1978) is a Guyanese-American retired professional wrestler and bodybuilder. He is best known for his time with WWE under the ring name Ezekiel Jackson, where he was the final ECW Champion under the WWE brand of t ...

by disqualification after interference by Castro and Cisco. Mundo then defeated Prince Puma and Big Ryck in the main event of the December 10, 2014 episode, which was a three-way ladder match, to finally win the hundred thousand dollars he was denied in the ''Lucha Underground'' debut. On January 7, 2015, Mundo participated in a 20-man "Aztec Warfare" battle royal for the

. He was the second ''luchador'' to enter the ring, but was the last man eliminated by Prince Puma who won the Championship.

King Cuerno Jorge Luis Alcantar Bolly (born April 30, 1984), is a Mexican second-generation ''luchador'' (professional wrestler). He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Santos Escobar. Before his WWE car ...

attacked Mundo on the February 4 episode, beginning a feud between them; the second installment took place on the episode which aired March 11, where Mundo and Cuerno wrestled in a Steel Cage match, which was won by Mundo. On May 13, Mundo turned into a

villain A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...

when he attacked Alberto El Patrón in his match against Hernandez, throwing him through the window of Dario Cueto's office. Mundo subsequently tossed El Patrón back into the ring, giving Hernandez the win. On the June 17, episode of ''Lucha Underground'', Johnny Mundo unsuccessfully challenged Prince Puma for the

in an Iron Man match. On August 5, 2015, at '' Ultima Lucha'', Mundo defeated Alberto El Patrón after an interference by his girlfriend

Melina Perez Melina Nava Perez (born March 9, 1979) is an American professional wrestler and model. She is best known for her time with WWE under the ring name Melina. Outside of WWE, Perez most recently wrestled for the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). ...

. On the February 3, 2016 episode of ''Lucha Underground'', Mundo faced Killshot in a winning effort. After the match, Mundo taunted Lucha Underground Champion Mil Muertes, only to be confronted by

Cage A cage is an enclosure often made of mesh, bars, or wires, used to confine, contain or protect something or someone. A cage can serve many purposes, including keeping an animal or person in captivity, capturing an animal or person, and displayin ...

. Mundo defeated Cage on February 24, after interference from the debuting Taya, subsequently becoming Mundo's valet. On the May 25 episode of ''Lucha Underground'', Taya revealed to

P. J. Black Phillip Paul Lloyd (born 3 March 1981) is a South African-American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time in WWE, under the ring name Justin Gabriel. He is currently wrestling under the ring name P. J. Black. A second-generation w ...

and Jack Evans that their partner Fénix was injured by Mundo. As Mundo revealed himself as Fénix's replacement for their match, Black and Evans allied with the two. Later that night in the main event, Mundo, Black and Evans defeated

Rey Mysterio Jr. Óscar Gutiérrez (born December 11, 1974), better known by his ring name Rey Mysterio, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand. Widely regarded as one of the greatest profe ...

, Prince Puma and Dragon Azteca Jr. to win the Lucha Underground Trios Championship, the first championship for each in ''Lucha Underground''. The week after, Mundo, Black and Evans, now collectively billed as Worldwide Underground, retained their championships in a rematch via disqualification. Worldwide Underground lost their titles to Aero Star, Drago and Fénix at the third and final part Ultima Lucha Dos, which aired on July 20. On the October 26 episode of ''Lucha Underground'', Mundo defeated Sexy Star to win the

Lucha Underground Gift of the Gods Championship The Gift of the Gods Championship was a professional wrestling championship promoted by Lucha Underground. Unlike most traditional professional wrestling championships, the Gift of the Gods Championship is promoted by what it grants the champion ...

after he knocked out Sexy Star with brass knuckles while the referee was unaware. On the November 23 episode of ''Lucha Underground'', he cashed in his Gift of the Gods Championship on Sexy Star before defeating her to win the Lucha Underground Championship, becoming the second Triple Crown Champion in Lucha Underground history. On the December 21 episode of ''Lucha Underground'', Mundo successfully defended his championship in a rematch against Sexy Star inside a steel cage. He lost the title to Prince Puma at '' Ultima Lucha Tres''. Mundo made his return on the fourth season's premiere, competing in Aztec Warfare entering at number 11. Mundo eliminated Ricky Mundo and Daga before getting eliminated by Marty Martinez and being attacked by the Reptile Tribe. On November 17, 2018, Mundo wrestled on the final episode of Lucha Underground, ''

Ultima Lucha Cuatro "Ultima Lucha Cuatro" (Spanish for Last Fight Four) is the name of the final episodes of the fourth season of professional wrestling TV series ''Lucha Underground''. The first part of ''Ultima Lucha Cuatro'' (episode 21) premiered on the El Rey Net ...

'', defeating

Matanza Cueto Jeffrey Cobb (ジェフ・コブ　''Jefu Kobu'', born July 11, 1982) is an American professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) where he is a two-time IWGP Tag Team Champion with United Emp ...

in a Sacrifice to the Gods match.

Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (2015–2018)

On May 24, 2015, Mundo made his debut for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA) at the

Lucha Libre World Cup The ''Lucha Libre'' World Cup was an annual professional wrestling tournament and event organized by Mexican professional wrestling promotion Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA) from 2015 until 2017. The first two tournaments, which featured three-man ...

event representing Lucha Underground as a member of "Team TNA/Lucha Underground" alongside TNA wrestlers Matt Hardy and Mr. Anderson. They finished in second place, losing in the finals to the "Dream Team" ( El Patrón Alberto, Myzteziz and

). On June 4, 2015 in the main event of

Verano de Escándalo Verano de Escándalo (Spanish Language, Spanish for "Summer of Scandal") is a major annual professional wrestling event in Mexico promoted by the Lucha Libre AAA World Wide (AAA) promotion. The show is as the name indicates a summer show, traditi ...

, Mundo established himself as a ''

rudo Rudo ( sr-cyrl, Рудо) is a town and municipality located in Republika Srpska, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it has a population of 7,963 inhabitants, while the town of Rudo has a population of 1,949 inhabitants. It is f ...

'' (or villain) and teamed with

El Mesias Gilbert Cosme Ramírez (born May 25, 1972) is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler, better known by his ring names El Mesías, Mil Muertes, Ricky Banderas and King Muertes. He began his career in the International Wrestling Association based in ...

and

Pentagón Jr. Pentagón Jr. (born February 5, 1985) is a Mexican luchador enmascarado (masked professional wrestler) signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) under the ring name Penta El Zero Miedo ("Penta Zero Fear"), where he currently holds one-third of the AEW ...

losing to Myzteziz, La Parka and Rey Mysterio Jr. On September 27, Konnan announced Mundo as an official member of the ''rudo''

, '' La Sociedad'', while he subsequently stepped down as the leader of the group. On October 4, at

Héroes Inmortales IX ''Héroes Inmortales IX'' (Spanish language, Spanish for "Immortal Heroes Nine") was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Lucha Libre AAA World Wide (AAA). The event, which comm ...

, Mundo unsuccessfully challenged El Patrón Alberto for the AAA Mega Championship, when he was defeated by disqualification. After Alberto left AAA, Mundo was scheduled to face Rey Mysterio Jr. for the vacant AAA Mega Championship at '' Guerra de Titanes'', but after the matches of the event were officially announced, neither Mundo nor Mysterio were featured for the event. Mundo participated in the 2016 Lucha Libre World Cup as a member of "Team Lucha Underground" alongside

Chavo Guerrero Jr. Salvador Guerrero IV (born October 20, 1970) better known by his ring names Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero Jr., is an American professional wrestler. He has previously worked for World Championship Wrestling (WCW), WWE, World Wrestling Feder ...

and

Brian Cage Brian Christopher Button

, defeating "Team Mexico Leyendas" (

Blue Demon Jr. Blue Demon Jr. (born July 19, 1966) is a Mexican professional wrestler. He is the adopted son of the original Blue Demon and is the first Mexican and the second masked wrestler to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship thus making him a one- ...

, Canek, and La Parka) in the quarter-finals, and "Team Mexico International" (

Dr. Wagner Jr. Juan Manuel González Barrón (born August 12, 1965) is a Mexican ''luchador'' (Spanish for "professional wrestler") who is best known under the ring name Dr. Wagner Jr., having used that name since 1987. He is the son of Manuel González Rivera ...

, and Dragon Azteca Jr.) in the semi-finals. Mundo's team won the tournament defeating "Team AAA" (

El Texano Jr. Juan Aguilar Leos (born July 31, 1984) is a Mexican ''luchador'', or professional wrestler, better known by the ring name Texano Jr. Aguilar is the son of Juan Conrado Aguilar Jáuregui, who wrestled under the name El Texano; Aguilar's brother ...

and Psycho Clown) in the finals. Johnny Mundo vs Pentagon Jr

After adopting an " anti-Mexico" attitude and teaming with

El Mesías Gilbert Cosme Ramírez (born May 25, 1972) is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler, better known by his ring names El Mesías, Mil Muertes, Ricky Banderas and King Muertes. He began his career in the International Wrestling Association based in ...

and Hernandez to defeat El Texano Jr., El Hijo del Fantasma and

, Mundo challenged the latter to a match at

Triplemanía XXIV Triplemanía XXIV was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced and scripted by the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Lucha Libre AAA World Wide (AAA). The event took place on August 28, 2016, and was held in the Arena Ciudad ...

for the

, to which Pentagón accepted. At the event, on August 28, Mundo defeated Pentagón to win the Latin American Championship, marking his first championship in AAA and becoming the first non-Mexican to hold the title. On October 2 in the main event of ''

Héroes Inmortales X ''Héroes Inmortales'' X (Spanish for "Immortal Heroes Ten") was a professional wrestling event produced and scripted by the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Lucha Libre AAA World Wide (AAA). The event took place on October 2, 2016 at Are ...

'', Mundo successfully defended his title against

Garza Jr. Humberto Garza Solano (born September 23, 1992) is a Mexican professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Angel (shortened from his previous ring name Angel Garza). He is a th ...

On March 19, 2017, at '' Rey de Reyes'', Mundo defeated El Texano Jr. and El Hijo del Fantasma in a three-way match to not only retain the Latin American Championship, but to also win Texano's AAA Mega Championship and Fantasma's

. In his first AAA Mega Championship defense, on June 30, Mundo successfully retained his title against Texano. In July 2017, Mundo and his fiancée Kira Forster, known as Taya, were involved in controversy with AAA and its Director of Talent

Vampiro Ian Richard Hodgkinson (born May 31, 1967), better known by his ring name Vampiro, is a Canadian semi-retired professional wrestler who most recently served as director of talent for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). He also worked for Lucha Unde ...

, which led to Taya's departure from the company. According to '' Wrestling Observer'', AAA asked Mundo to turn in Taya's Reina de Reinas Championship for a photo shoot the day prior to an event on July 1. A few weeks later, Vampiro addressed to the live crowd that Forster was stripped of the title due to not appearing to defend her title, despite not being scheduled to appear. On August 26, at

Triplemanía XXV Triplemanía XXV was a professional wrestling event produced and scripted by the Mexican professional wrestling promotion Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). The event took place on August 26, 2017, and was held in the Arena Ciudad de México in Mexi ...

, Mundo successfully defended his three championships against Fantasma and Texano in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match. On October 1 at ''Héroes Inmortales'' XI, Mundo wrestled in three matches, retaining the Mega Championship against

Rey Wagner Juan Manuel González Barrón (born August 12, 1965) is a Mexican ''luchador'' (Spanish for "professional wrestler") who is best known under the ring name Dr. Wagner Jr., having used that name since 1987. He is the son of Manuel González River ...

, but losing the Latin American Championship to Fantasma in the annual Copa Antonio Peña battle royal, and the World Cruiserweight Championship to Lanzelot in a ten-way match, ending his triple championship reign at 196 days. On January 26, 2018 at Guerra de Titanes, Mundo lost the AAA Mega Championship to

, ending his reign at 314 days.

Impact Wrestling (2017–2019)

Championship pursuits (2017–2018)

In August 2017, despite not being signed to the promotion at the time, Hennigan appeared for

at some live events. On August 17, a video package was shown at

Destination X Destination X is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event held by Impact Wrestling currently in the month of August. The event primarily revolves around the X-Division, the 2005, 2006, 2009, and 2010 events had Ultimate X matches. It w ...

revealing his ring name as Johnny Impact. His first feud in the promotion was with Eli Drake, when Impact made his televised in-ring debut on the August 24 episode of '' Impact!'', participating in a Gauntlet for the Gold match for the vacant Global Championship, but was eliminated by eventual winner Eli Drake. Impact would face Drake for the title at Victory Road on September 28 and Bound for Glory on November 5, where he failed to win the title. Since the Bound for Glory match ended after Alberto El Patrón made an interference, Impact, Alberto and Drake had a three-way Last Chance

Six Sides of Steel match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

on the January 25, 2018 episode of ''Impact!'', where Drake retained the title. After Drake lost the renamed Impact World Championship to Austin Aries, Impact began pursuit of Aries's championship, facing him at

Crossroads Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to: * Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet Film and television Films * ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa * ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...

special on March 8, where he lost again. On the April 19 episode of ''Impact!'', Johnny Impact was attacked and injured by

Kongo Kong Steven Wilson (born August 10, 1979) is an American professional wrestler best known under the ring name Kongo Kong. He is best known for his time with Global Force Wrestling and Impact Wrestling. Early career Wilson went to Saginaw Valley Stat ...

, which was performed to write him off television in order to film for reality television show ''

''. Impact returned at Slammiversary XVI on July 22, when he won a four-way match against

Fenix Fenix, Fénix (Spanish and Portuguese) and Fênix (Brazilian Portuguese) all mean Phoenix (mythology), phoenix and may refer to: Business * Fenix Automotive, a British supercar manufacturer founded by Lee Noble in 2009 * Fénix Directo, a Spanish ...

, Taiji Ishimori, and Petey Williams.

Impact World Champion (2018–2019)

Impact began a feud with the Impact World Champion Austin Aries, which led to a match at Bound for Glory. As the PPV moved closer, the feud started to blur the lines between a work (something scripted) and shoot (something real), beginning with the two wrestlers trading insults on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

that they appeared to take personal, with Aries later deleting many of his tweets. Specifically, Impact mocked Aries' short stature and the champion responded by making fun of his wife's weight. Aries and Impact both alleged in the media that they authentically took issue with comments.

TMZ Live TMZ is a tabloid news website owned by Fox Corporation. It made its debut on November 8, 2005, originally as a collaboration between AOL and Telepictures, a division of Warner Bros., until Time Warner divested AOL in 2009. On September 13, 20 ...

also pushed the angle "like twas a shoot". The two wrestlers got in a brawl the night before Bound for Glory during Abyss's

Impact Hall of Fame The Impact Hall of Fame (stylized as ''IMPACT! Hall of Fame'') is a hall of fame that honors professional wrestlers and wrestling personalities who contributed to the history of the U.S. based wrestling promotion Impact Wrestling formally known as ...

induction. At the event on October 14, Impact defeated Aries to win the Impact World Championship. Throughout the following weeks, Impact successfully defended his title against Fénix, Killer Kross, and Matt Sydal. At

Homecoming Homecoming is the tradition of welcoming back alumni or other former members of an organization to celebrate the organization's existence. It is a tradition in many high schools, colleges, and churches in the United States, Canada and Liberia. ...

on January 6, 2019, Impact defeated

Brian Cage Brian Christopher Button

to retain his championship. During the February tapings for Impact Wrestling, Impact defended his title in a four-way contest involving Killer Kross, Moose and Brian Cage. Impact hit his finisher on Moose, barely seconds prior to Cage hitting his ''Drill Claw'' finisher on Killer Kross. As Impact was able to cover his opponent first the referee was able to provide the count and therefore Impact won the match as Brian Cage went to cover his opponent. On the March 15 episode of ''Impact Wrestling'', Impact's wife Taya Valkyrie would low blow Cage, which allowed Impact to attack Cage, turning into a villain. At

United We Stand United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

on April 4, Impact won a five-way Ultimate X match to become the number one contender for the Impact X Division Championship. Throughout April, Impact successfully defended his title from Cage, often with interferences from Valkyrie and former referee John E Bravo. At

Rebellion Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

on April 28, Impact, accompanied by Valkyrie and Bravo, lost the title to Cage in a match where

Lance Storm Lance Timothy Evers (; born April 3, 1969), known professionally by his ring name Lance Storm, is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his work in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), Extreme Championship Wrestling (EC ...

was special guest referee; this left Impact's reign to end at 196 days, leaving it the longest reign since Bobby Roode's 2011–2012 reign, and therefore the longest reign in seven years, as well as the third-longest reign in history. On the May 31 episode of ''Impact Wrestling'', Impact challenged X Division Champion Rich Swann to a title match at

Slammiversary XVII Slammiversary XVII was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by Impact Wrestling. It took place on July 7, 2019 at the Gilley's Dallas in Dallas, Texas. It was the fifteenth event under the Slammiversary chronology. Eight m ...

. Later that night, he teamed with Michael Elgin to face Swann and Willie Mack in a tag team match, in which Swann pinned Impact. At Slammiversary XVII on July 7, Impact lost to Swann. On July 8,

Pro Wrestling Insider Dave Scherer is an American sports writer and journalist, best known for writing about professional wrestling for the ''ECW Magazine'', '' New York Daily News'', '' World of Wrestling Magazine'', 1Wrestling.com and founding the newsletter ''The W ...

reported that Hennigan's contract with Impact Wrestling had expired several weeks prior to the event, and the two sides agreed to have Hennigan work until Slammiversary.

Return to WWE (2019–2021)

On September 26, 2019, it was reported by Mike Johnson of ''

'' that Hennigan had re-signed with WWE, which was officially confirmed by the company on December 3 during ''

WWE Backstage ''WWE Backstage'' is a professional wrestling studio show that was broadcast live every Tuesday night at 11:00 PM EST on FS1. The show was hosted by Renee Paquette and Booker T. The show premiered on November 5, 2019 with special preview episod ...

''. He made his return on January 3, 2020 episode of ''SmackDown'' under his John Morrison ring name and resumed his partnership with The Miz, thus re-establishing him as a

for the first time in WWE in 10 years. They would feud with the SmackDown Tag Team Champions, The New Day, with Morrison winning singles matches against Big E and Kofi Kingston. At Royal Rumble on January 26, 2020, Morrison participated in the Royal Rumble match as the fifth entrant, but he was eliminated by

Brock Lesnar Brock Edward Lesnar ( ; born July 12, 1977) is an American-Canadian professional wrestler, former mixed martial artist (MMA), amateur wrestler, and professional American football player who holds both American and Canadian citizenship. He is ...

. At

Super ShowDown WWE Super ShowDown (originally stylized as Super Show-Down) was a professional wrestling event produced by WWE, an American-based promotion. It was broadcast live and available only through pay-per-view (PPV) and WWE's livestreaming service, the ...

on February 27, Miz and Morrison won the SmackDown Tag Team Championship from The New Day. On March 8, Morrison and Miz had their first title defense in a tag team Elimination Chamber match at

, successfully defending their titles against The New Day, The Usos, Heavy Machinery (

Otis Otis may refer to: Arts and entertainment Characters * Otis (Superman), in the films ''Superman'' and ''Superman II'' and related DC Comics media ** Otis Graves, in the TV series ''Supergirl'' * Otis (The Walking Dead), Otis (''The Walking Dead' ...

and

Tucker Tucker may refer to: Places United States * Tucker, Arkansas * Tucker, Georgia * Tucker, Mississippi * Tucker, Missouri * Tucker, Utah, ghost town * Tucker County, West Virginia Outer space * Tucker (crater), a small lunar impact crater in the s ...

), Lucha House Party ( Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado), and Dolph Ziggler and

Robert Roode Robert Francis Roode Jr. (born May 11, 1976) is a Canadian professional wrestler signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. He is currently inactive due to undergoing neck surgery. Roode is known for his 12-year tenure for Total Nonstop ...

. On the first night of

WrestleMania 36 WrestleMania 36 was the 36th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown, and NXT brand divisions. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic ...

on April 4, after the Miz's absence due to illness, Morrison defended the SmackDown Tag Team Championships by himself in a ladder match against Kofi Kingston and Jimmy Uso, in which he was successful. On the April 17 episode of ''SmackDown'', the duo lost the titles back to The New Day after Miz unsuccessfully defended the titles by himself in a triple threat match against Big E and Jey Uso ending their reign at 50 days. At Money in the Bank on May 10, Morrison and Miz unsuccessfully attempted to regain the championship in a fatal four-way tag team match also involving Lucha House Party ( Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado) and The Forgotten Sons (Steve Cutler and

Wesley Blake Cory James Weston (born September 4, 1987) is an American professional wrestler currently working on the independent circuit under the ring name Westin Blake. He is best known for his time in WWE, where he performed under the ring name Wesley B ...

). Morrison and Miz then started a rivalry with

Universal Champion Universal Championship may refer to: *APW Universal Heavyweight Championship, the top championship of All Pro Wrestling *WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship, the world championship of World Wrestling Council *WWE Universal Championship, the worl ...

Braun Strowman. At

Backlash Backlash may refer to: Literature * '' Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women'', a 1991 book by Susan Faludi * ''Backlash'' (Star Wars novel), a 2010 novel by Aaron Allston * Backlash (Marc Slayton), comic book character * ''Backla ...

on June 14, the duo competed for Strowman's title in a two-on-one handicap match, but lost. As part of the 2020 Draft in October, both Morrison and Miz were drafted to the

. Prior to the draft, Morrison and Miz entered a feud with

for his

Money in the Bank contract The Money in the Bank ladder match is a multi-person ladder match held by the professional wrestling promotion WWE. First contested at WWE's annual WrestleMania event beginning in 2005, a separate Money in the Bank pay-per-view was established ...

. At Hell in a Cell on October 25, Morrison accompanied Miz in his match against Otis for the contract, which Miz won. On the December 7 episode of ''Raw'', Morrison ended a nearly seven-month losing streak after defeating Drew McIntyre and Sheamus in a 3-on-2 handicap match alongside The Miz and AJ Styles. Morrison entered the 2021 Royal Rumble match on January 31, lasting over eight minutes before being eliminated by Damian Priest. At

event on February 21, 2021, Morrison defeated

, Elias, and Mustafa Ali in a fatal four-way match for an opportunity at the United States Championship. Later that night, he failed to win the title in a triple threat match against Riddle and reigning champion Bobby Lashley, as Riddle won the match. After this, Morrison and Miz feuded with rapper Bad Bunny and Damian Priest. At WrestleMania 37 on April 10, Morrison and Miz lost to Bad Bunny and Priest. After Miz suffered an injury at

WrestleMania Backlash WWE Backlash, known as WrestleMania Backlash since 2021, is a professional wrestling event that is produced by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. It is broadcast live and available only through pay-per-view (PPV) and ...

on May 16, Morrison would embark on a singles run, starting by defeating Jeff Hardy on the June 14 episode of ''Raw''. The following week, Morrison defeated

Randy Orton Randal Keith Orton (born April 1, 1980) is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and actor who is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw brand but is currently out of action due to a back injury. H ...

to qualify for the

at the namesake pay-per-view event on July 18, which was won by Big E. On the August 23 episode of ''Raw'', Miz turned on Morrison by attacking him, thus turning Morrison face and setting up a feud between the pair. However, the feud abruptly ended after the Miz took a hiatus to compete on ''

Dancing with the Stars ''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the forma ...

''. On November 18, as part of an eighth round of layoffs due to budget cuts stemming from the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Morrison was released from his WWE contract.

Return to AAA (2022)

On February 19, 2022, Hennigan, as "Johnny Superstar" (his former ring name in

), unsuccessfully challenged El Hijo del Vikingo at '' Rey de Reyes'' for the AAA Mega Championship. At Triplemanía XXX: Monterrey, Hennigan, now under the name "Johnny Caballero", teamed with

Taurus Taurus is Latin for 'bull' and may refer to: * Taurus (astrology), the astrological sign * Taurus (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac * Taurus (mythology), one of two Greek mythological characters named Taurus * ''Bos taurus ...

in a

three-way In human sexuality, a threesome is commonly understood as "a sexual interaction between three people whereby at least one engages in physical sexual behaviour with both the other individuals". Though ''threesome'' most commonly refers to sexua ...

tag team match to defeat Dragon Lee and

Dralístico Carlos Muñoz González (born 1991), better known by his ring name Dralístico, is a Mexican second-generation ''luchador enmascarado'' (masked professional wrestler) who currently works for Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA). He is best known for ...

, and Laredo Kid and Jack Cartwheel. In the main event of Triplemanía XXX: Tijuana, Caballero was revealed as Matt Hardy's mystery tag team partner (due to his original partner Jeff Hardy's arrest five days prior). Caballero, who went under the name "Johnny Hardy", and Matt Hardy lost their match against Dragon Lee and Dralístico. At Triplemanía XXX: Mexico City on October 15, Caballero teamed with

Brian Cage Brian Christopher Button

and

Sam Adonis Samuel Elias Polinsky (born August 9, 1989) is an American professional wrestler and promoter, best known under the ring name Sam Adonis and Sam Elias. Polinsky formerly worked in Mexico's ''Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre'' (CMLL) as a heel pro-Tr ...

in a three-way ''trios'' match for the AAA World Trios Championship against Psycho Clown, Laredo Kid, and Bandido and champions '' Nueva Generación Dinamita'' (

El Cuatrero El Cuatrero (born 1996) is a Mexican ''luchador enmascarado'', or masked professional wrestler, where he is currently signed to Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide. Best known for his work for '' Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre'' (CMLL) based in Mexico Cit ...

, Sansón, and Forastero). Caballero pinned Laredo Kid to win the match for his team, but did not win the World Trios Championship due to the match stipulation in which the champions must be pinned to win the titles.

Return to the independent circuit (2022–present)

On March 31, 2022, Hennigan debuted for Game Changer Wrestling (GCW) at Josh Barnett's Bloodsport 8, defeating Simon Gotch. The following day, Hennigan, as "Johnny Caballero", wrestled at GCW's Wrld on Lucha event, defeating Jack Cartwheel. On May 28, Hennigan appeared at GCW's Downward Spiral event under the name "Johnny Game Changer", defeating Joey Janela. On June 3, Hennigan debuted for

Progress Wrestling Progress Wrestling (stylized as PROGRESS) is a British professional wrestling promotion that was established in 2011 by comedian Jim Smallman, events and comedy promoter Jon Briley, and later, actor Glen Robinson (professionally known as Glen ...

for the Super Strong Style 16 tournament under the name "Johnny Progress". He defeated Jack Evans in the first round and Aramis in the quarterfinals, before losing to Warren Banks in the semifinals.

All Elite Wrestling (2022)

On the May 18, 2022 episode of ''

Dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and Stabilizer (chemistry), stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish people, Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern Germa ...

'', under the name Johnny Elite, Hennigan debuted for All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as the surprise "Joker" entrant in the

Owen Hart Cup The Owen Hart Foundation Tournament, is a series of professional wrestling tournaments produced annually by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW) in partnership with The Owen Hart Foundation. It consists of two single-elimination tourn ...

Memorial Tournament's quarterfinals, being defeated by Samoa Joe. After the match, it was reported that Hennigan had not signed a contract with AEW, but that "the door is open" for him to return. On the May 27 episode of '' AEW Dark'', Elite scored his first victory by defeating

Marq Quen Marq may refer to: People *Marq Mellor (b. 1968), American field hockey player *Marq Porciuncula (b. 1987), German musician *Marq Torien (b. 1962), American singer *Marq de Villiers, Canadian writer Other * Marq (company), formerly Lucidpress, a ...

. On the June 1 episode of ''Dynamite'', he issued an "open contract" challenge which was answered by a returning Miro, who defeated Elite.

Professional wrestling style and persona

Hennigan was described by WWE as having "lightning-fast offense", "high-risk aerial expertise", and "incredible agility". He is known to utilize a split-legged corkscrew moonsault, dubbed ''Starship Pain'', as a finishing maneuver. During his singles run as Johnny Nitro, he used a standing shooting star press as his finisher. After transitioning to his John Morrison character, Hennigan began using a corkscrew neckbreaker dubbed ''Moonlight Drive'', in reference to the song of the same name written by Jim Morrison. He also prominently used a

superkick Strikes are offensive moves in professional wrestling, that can sometimes be used to set up an opponent for a hold or for a throw. There are a wide variety of strikes in pro wrestling, and many are known by several different names. Professional wre ...

as a finisher in 2008 during a feud with D-Generation X, as a way to mock

Shawn Michaels Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965), better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative. Widely regarded as one of ...

's ''Sweet Chin Music'' maneuver. Hennigan is a practitioner of

parkour Parkour () is an athletic training discipline or sport in which practitioners (called ''traceurs'') attempt to get from point A to point B in the fastest and most efficient way possible, without assisting equipment and often while performing a ...

and often incorporates it into his wrestling style, giving him the nickname "The Prince of Parkour". He also has a background in

amateur wrestling Amateur wrestling is a variant of wrestling practiced in collegiate, school, or other amateur level competitions. There are two international wrestling styles performed in the Olympic Games: freestyle and Greco-Roman. Both styles are under the ...

, breakdancing,

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...

, and

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

. Regarding his unique wrestling style, Hennigan stated in a 2021 interview with ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

'': Alongside his team MNM, Hennigan debuted on WWE television as Johnny Nitro, presenting himself as an arrogant wrestler with "elite Hollywood status". After winning the ECW World Championship in 2007, he changed his ring name to John Morrison and his

was tweaked to be even more conceited and self-aggrandizing — in addition to being modeled after Jim Morrison, the legendary frontman of the 1960s rock band

The Doors The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...

, to whom he bears a strong physical resemblance. Following his return to WWE and reunion with his tag team partner the Miz in 2020, Hennigan added a comedic aspect to his villainous character, with WWE describing him as using "quirkiness and quick wit to shine every time he is on screen". He also began to refer to himself as "Johnny Drip Drip", a reference to the song "

Drip Drip or DRIP may refer to: * Mesomycetozoea, a class of eukaryotes also known as the DRIP clade * Drip gas, natural gas condensate * Drip irrigation, in agriculture and gardening * Dripping liquid * Drip email (campaign), the process of automati ...

" by rapper

Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar Cephus (, ; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper and songwriter. She first gained popularity as an influencer on Vine and Instagram. From 2015 to early 2017, she appeared as ...

. Outside of WWE, Hennigan began referring to himself as the "Mayor of Slamtown", a fictional town he first coined in

in 2015. Hennigan filed to trademark the term "Slamtown" in November 2020.

Other media

In 2009, Hennigan and Maryse Ouellet were interviewed on

Eurosport Eurosport is a group of pay television networks in Europe and parts of Asia. Owned by Warner Bros. Discovery through Warner Bros. Discovery Sports#Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe properties, its international sports unit, it operates two ...

. In 2009, Hennigan appeared on two episodes of '' Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?'', which were both aired on September 29. Hennigan is the subject of a WWE

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

, called ''John Morrison – Rock Star'', which was released on February 16, 2010. The DVD covers his career from his name change to John Morrison up until his Intercontinental Championship win in September 2009. He appeared on an episode of ''

Destroy Build Destroy ''Destroy Build Destroy'' is an American live action reality series on Cartoon Network hosted by Andrew W.K. It was a game show, in which two teams destroyed a random object and built vehicles from it, and then the winners destroyed the losers' ...

'' on March 3, 2010. Hennigan was on the cover of ''

Muscle & Fitness ''Muscle & Fitness'' is an American fitness and bodybuilding magazine founded in 1935 by Canadian entrepreneur Joe Weider. It was originally published under the title ''Your Physique'', before being renamed to ''Muscle Builder'' in 1954, and acq ...

'' in June 2010, with the issue also featuring an interview and photo shoot. In 2016, Hennigan, Rey Mysterio, and

appeared on

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

to promote the second season of ''Lucha Underground''. Hennigan is also a frequent collaborator with

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

-based film producers Bat in the Sun Productions, appearing in two episodes of their well-known ''Super Power Beat Down'' series; playing as Casey Jones (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Casey Jones against Kick-Ass (character), Kick-Ass in episode 13, and as Bucky Barnes, Winter Soldier against Nightwing in episode 19. Hennigan portrayed Eternal Warrior in the web series ''Ninjak vs. the Valiant Universe'', produced by Valiant Entertainment and directed by Bat in the Sun. Hennigan is a playable character in ''WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2007'' and ''WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2008'' as "Johnny Nitro", ''WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2009'', ''WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2010'', ''WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2011'', ''WWE '12'' and ''WWE 2K22'' as "John Morrison", and ''RetroMania Wrestling'' under the name "Johnny Retro".

Filmmaking

After leaving WWE in 2011, Hennigan pursued a career in the film industry as an actor and filmmaker. In 2013, he appeared in ''20 Feet Below: The Darkness Descending'' with Danny Trejo, as well as served as co-producer of the film. In 2017, Hennigan released his first feature film titled ''Boone: The Bounty Hunter'', which he starred in, co-wrote, and served as executive producer of. Hennigan sold his house in order to finance the film. On October 31, 2022, Hennigan announced the release of his directorial debut, a comedy horror short film titled ''The Iron Sheik Massacre'' which he also produced and co-wrote with his wife Kira Forster. The film stars Hennigan and Forster alongside fellow wrestlers Karrion Kross, PJ Black, Holly Meowy, Super Panda, and the voice of The Iron Sheik, and will have its first screening on November 5, 2022 at the Los Angeles International Film Festival.

''Survivor: David vs. Goliath''

Hennigan was a contestant on the 37th season of ''

'', ''Survivor: David vs. Goliath'' where he was originally part of the Goliath tribe and later the Tiva tribe before making it to the merged tribe Kalokalo. He finished 12th out of 20 contestants and became the second member of the jury after the former members of the Goliath tribe were blindsided at tribal council; two contestants used hidden immunity idols, causing Hennigan to be eliminated despite only having three elimination votes, as Christian Hubicki, who received seven, was immune. Hennigan's performance as a contestant and the episode of his elimination received critical acclaim. Chris Chase of ''USA Today'' praised Hennigan for being "true to everything we’ve seen from him this season, [and] a class act after his shock defeat". Writing for ''People (magazine), People'', former ''Survivor'' contestant Stephen Fishbach highlighted that "in a tribal council that was meant to take out the Davidest David [Christian Hubicki], it was really the Goliath of the Goliaths [Hennigan] who fell. How perfectly Biblical." The show’s executive producer and host Jeff Probst was "so impressed" with Hennigan, describing him as "the guy who catches the winning touchdown pass in the final moments of the Super Bowl, and then, instead of some crazy celebration, he casually tosses the ball to the ref, kisses his wife and hugs his kids", alongside stating that he would "absolutely" have Hennigan back on the show.

Filmography

Personal life

Hennigan is good friends with fellow professional wrestlers The Miz, Dolph Ziggler, Matt Cardona, Jeff Hardy, and

. He was also good friends with Shad Gaspard, and still is with

, of Cryme Tyme, and was a part of the search team after Gaspard's Shad Gaspard#Disappearance and death, disappearance and death. Hennigan was involved in an On-again, off-again relationship, on-off relationship with former WWE Diva and on-screen manager

from 2003 to 2015. The pair met during the auditions for ''Tough Enough III'', in which Perez was cut and Hennigan eventually won. Since 2016, Hennigan has been in a relationship with Kira Forster, better known as Taya Valkyrie. The pair met through the affiliation between AAA and Lucha Underground, with Forster becoming Hennigan's on-screen partner in the latter promotion prior to their real-life relationship. They became engaged on June 14, 2017, and were married on June 1, 2018.

Championships and accomplishments

**5 Star Wrestling#Championships and Accomplishments, 5 Star Wrestling Championship (1 time) **One Night Tournament (2017) *ACW Wisconsin **ACW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *''The Baltimore Sun'' **Tag Team of the Year (2008) – with The Miz *Blackcraft Wrestling **BCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *Continental Wrestling Federation **CWF United States Championship (1 time) *DDT Pro-Wrestling **Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship (Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship#Title history, 1 time) *European Pro Wrestling **EPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *Family Wrestling Entertainment ** FWE Heavyweight Championship (FWE Heavyweight Championship#Title history, 1 time) *

(List of Impact World Champions, 1 time) * Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide ** AAA Mega Championship (AAA Mega Championship#Title history, 1 time) **

(AAA Latin American Championship#Title history, 1 time) **

(List of AAA World Cruiserweight Champions, 1 time) **Lucha Libre World Cup (Lucha Libre World Cup (2016), 2016 Men's Division) – with

and

Brian Cage Brian Christopher Button

(List of Lucha Underground Champions, 1 time) **

(Lucha Underground Gift of the Gods Championship#Title history, 1 time) ** Lucha Underground Trios Championship (Lucha Underground Trios Championship#Title history, 1 time) – with Jack Evans and

**Triple Crown (professional wrestling)#Lucha Underground, Second Triple Crown Champion *Mondo Lucha **Mondo Lucha Championship (1 time) **Mondo Lucha Tag Team Championship (1 time) - with Matt Cross (wrestler), Matt Cross *Next Generation Wrestling **NGW World Championship (1 time) **NGW World Title Tournament (2013) *

(OVW Southern Tag Team Championship#Title history, 1 time) – with Joey Mercury, Joey Matthews *Pacific Coast Wrestling/PCW Ultra **PCW Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *''Pro Wrestling Illustrated'' **PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year, Most Improved Wrestler of the Year (2009) **PWI Tag Team of the Year, Tag Team of the Year (2005) – with Joey Mercury **Ranked No. 24 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the ''Pro Wrestling Illustrated#PWI 500, PWI 500'' in 2017 *Qatar Pro Wrestling **QPW Souq Waqif Championship (1 time) **QPW Souq Waqif Title Tournament (2015) *Rogue Wrestling **Rogue Championship (1 time) **Rogue Championship Tournament (2019) *WWE, World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE ** ECW World Championship (List of ECW World Heavyweight Champions, 1 time) ** WWE Intercontinental Championship (List of WWE Intercontinental Champions, 3 times) **

(List of WWE Raw Tag Team Champions, 4 times) – with Joey Mercury (3) and The Miz (1) ** World Tag Team Championship (List of World Tag Team Champions (WWE), 1 time) – with The Miz **WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship (List of WWE SmackDown Tag Team Champions, 1 time) – with The Miz **List of WWE tournaments#ECW World Championship Tournament, ECW World Championship Tournament (2007) ** ''WWE Tough Enough#Tough Enough III, Tough Enough III'' (2003) ** Slammy Award (2 times) ***Tag Team of the Year (Slammy Award#2008 Slammy Awards, 2008) – with The Miz ***Best WWE.com Exclusive (2008) – with The Miz *World Series Wrestling **World Series Wrestling#WSW World Heavyweight Championship, WSW Heavyweight Championship (2 times, current)https://www.pwinsider.com/article/160777/janela-vs-morrison-cardona-chelsea-brian-cage-flip-gordon-taya-more-wsw-phoenix-rising-tour-night-one-on-fitetv-report.html?p=1 *World Wrestling Fan Xperience **WWFX Heavyweight Championship (1 time) *''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' **List of Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards#Tag Team of the Year, Tag Team of the Year (2008) – with The Miz

Notes

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Morrison, John 1979 births 21st-century American male actors AAA Mega Champions American capoeira practitioners American male professional wrestlers ECW Heavyweight Champions/ECW World Heavyweight Champions Living people People from Palos Verdes, California Professional wrestlers from California Sportspeople from Los Angeles Survivor (American TV series) contestants TNA World Heavyweight/Impact World Champions Tough Enough winners Traceurs WWF/WWE Intercontinental Champions 21st-century professional wrestlers AAA Latin American Champions AAA World Cruiserweight Champions Lucha Underground Champions Lucha Underground Gift of the Gods Champions Lucha Underground Trios Champions Ironman Heavymetalweight Champions