In the world of professional wrestling, few names command as much respect and admiration as Randy Orton. From his early days as the brash and cocky Legend Killer to his current role as a revered locker room leader, Orton's journey through WWE is a testament to his evolution as both a performer and a person. In this video, we look into the journey of Randy Orton "The Legend Killer"
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00:00 Randy Orton is one of the biggest names in WWE modern history, especially this millennium.
00:16 He has been in the company for more than 20 years, has won championships 14 times at the
00:21 top level.
00:22 If it's not legendary enough for you, then I don't know what is.
00:26 From his beginnings as a brash youngster from a multiple generation wrestling family to
00:31 his evolution into the feared legend killer, capturing the world championship at the mere
00:37 age of 24 years old, then morphing into the cunning viper, Orton's journey has truly
00:42 slithered beyond some of the expectations that were already pretty high when he broke
00:47 into WWE.
00:49 Now established as a true veteran in his own ranks and one who has truly reformed himself
00:54 outside of the ring, he has truly experienced it all in the world of professional wrestling.
00:59 But with every iteration of the apex predator, we have seen him grow, both as a talent and
01:04 as a person.
01:05 I mean, who would have thought that someone like Randy Orton, who used to get into trouble
01:09 quite a bit in the early days of his career, would become one of the most lovable and revered
01:14 members of the WWE roster.
01:16 Let's dive into the highs, the lows, and the defining moments that shaped the evolution
01:21 of Randy Orton from a rookie sensation to a legend killer to a legend in his own right.
01:26 The legacy of professional wrestling was coursing through his veins, thanks to his father, WWE
01:31 Hall of Famer Cowboy Bob Orton, and his revered grandfather, Bob Orton, Randall Keith Orton,
01:38 seemed destined for the squared circle.
01:41 But if you asked him, he would have said becoming a pro wrestler, maybe at some point in his
01:45 life, was never a part of those initial plans.
01:47 On the A&E documentary looking at his career, he revealed that early on, when people asked
01:51 him if he wanted to be a wrestler like his father, he said no, because he didn't have
01:56 that level of confidence.
01:58 Not knowing what to do with his life, like many young men, Randy Orton enlisted in the
02:01 United States Marine Corps after graduating high school.
02:04 Flying off to California initially enjoyed being there, it was grueling mentally and
02:07 physically, but a young Randy was having the best time of his life.
02:11 According to him, boot camp turned him into a man.
02:14 But when he went on to the fleet training, that's where things started to change.
02:18 He told some horror stories of having a very grueling experience there that wasn't nearly
02:23 as positive as boot camp.
02:25 He recalled a time when someone pranked him by wrapping him tightly in a sleeping bag,
02:30 which resulted individually in a panic attack as they sat on top of him.
02:34 Orton obviously didn't want these things, and he wanted to quit, but they did not let
02:38 him as he signed a contract.
02:40 So what did he do?
02:41 He got onto a bus and went home and stayed for two and a half months there, going AWOL
02:46 with the military.
02:47 He took responsibility for his actions, voluntarily turning himself in and expressed his desire
02:51 to leave.
02:52 Randy Orton then started working at a gas station, trying to reevaluate his future.
02:56 This is when he started to reevaluate his perspective on the family business, professional
03:02 wrestling.
03:03 He couldn't help but consider the influence of his father's legacy in the industry, and
03:07 maybe he could help get his own foothold in the world of wrestling.
03:10 He asked his father for help, and that is exactly what he did.
03:13 Cowboy Bob made a call to Bruce Prichard, and soon Randy Orton's journey in professional
03:18 wrestling started.
03:19 It wasn't like Randy always wanted to be a pro wrestler, and he decided to give it
03:23 a shot because maybe in his perspective, his options were limited.
03:27 Orton was then shipped off to Ohio Valley Wrestling, the developmental territory of
03:31 WWE at the time, and the class of recruits there was quite stacked.
03:35 I mean, headliners of a generation to come in Brock Lesnar, John Cena, Dave Bautista,
03:41 and of course, Orton himself.
03:43 Orton was the youngest among them and had little to no experience in pro wrestling,
03:47 but he was a natural and took to it pretty fast.
03:49 I mean, he was raised around the business as a child.
03:52 However, as his skills flourished, so did his attitude.
03:55 Randy Orton said himself, "I got to this point where I had this confidence, and with
04:00 that confidence came this kind of arrogance and this cocky nature."
04:05 He wasn't very liked by his peers, largely due to that attitude, and he had to work on
04:10 himself to earn their respect.
04:12 Orton studied the tapes of the greats like Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat, Arn Anderson,
04:17 and Pat Patterson, learning a lot from their mechanics and delivery in the ring.
04:21 He stayed in OVW for around two years before WWE called him up for his big debut on television.
04:27 However, before he made his official debut, he started working on un-televised matches,
04:32 where he really got his boots underneath him.
04:35 Finally, Randy Orton made his debut in April of 2002 on Smackdown against Hardcore Holly,
04:42 who beat him.
04:43 It was evident from the get-go that WWE recognized something special in Orton.
04:48 The fact that he was involved in a segment with Vince McMahon around the time of his
04:52 debut proves that they saw something that was there.
04:56 However, not soon after his debut, he suffered a debilitating shoulder injury.
05:00 Orton's journey had only just begun when he found himself sidelined.
05:04 This must have been devastating, and thankfully WWE did not give up on him, as they featured
05:08 him regularly on television, updating the path to his return.
05:12 First time he ever came out in that sling with his arm on his shoulder would be about
05:16 three to four months.
05:18 He got booed heavily.
05:19 That's right, an injured superstar on the mend was getting booed as a villain.
05:24 He got that Dom Mysterio heat for you young Jun-Z fans.
05:28 Orton's weekly updates on his health got more and more heat.
05:32 It was cringey, privileged minutes on television.
05:35 His natural cocky arrogance helped him establish himself as an obnoxious heel without ever
05:40 wrestling on television.
05:42 He had a character built in before the bell rang for his return.
05:46 Around this time, Triple H was looking for some guys to build a faction around himself,
05:51 and along with the nature boy Ric Flair, who knew something about putting a group together,
05:55 Randy Orton fit well within that vision.
05:58 Upon his return, he joined the group that would be known as Evolution, and the inclusion
06:02 of Dave Bautista as the muscle of the group finished out their ranks.
06:06 Being a part of the group was a two-pronged attack.
06:09 It would develop both Orton and Bautista under the wings of Triple H and Flair.
06:16 The invaluable guidance they received from these two showed as their careers developed
06:20 as single superstars in the future.
06:23 You learn how to become a villain from two of the best villains of all time.
06:27 Everyone in the WWE production ranks believed in him, and it was a matter of time before
06:31 Orton took over.
06:32 Soon, he captured the Intercontinental Championship and developed the Legend Killer gimmick, where
06:38 he would take out beloved names from the past, and maybe even some of those still present
06:42 in WWE's ongoing weekly television.
06:44 He began attacking legends in the business, like Shawn Michaels, Jerry "The King" Lawler,
06:49 and Sgt. Slaughter.
06:55 Thriving in the role, he helped the stock of Orton rise quickly and gain credibility
07:00 that maybe he couldn't get within years he got within months.
07:04 Some would claim that this just came out of Randy Orton's natural arrogance.
07:08 At Backlash 2004, Randy Orton would come into his true form as he would take on the hardcore
07:14 legend Mick Foley in his environment, The Hardcore Match.
07:19 As he was slammed on flesh-ripping thumbtacks, he broke through to another level.
07:25 It may have been Foley's signature match, but it was Orton's signature victory, maybe
07:29 the one that would define the early stages of his career and break him through to the
07:34 next level.
07:35 After shedding the Intercontinental Championship, Randy Orton would go to the next level, defeating
07:40 Chris Benoit, who himself recently won the World Heavyweight Championship, to become
07:44 at the time the youngest World Heavyweight Champion in WWE at the tender age of 24 years
07:50 old.
07:51 He thought his brothers in Evolution would celebrate with him, but on the August 16th
07:56 episode of Raw that year, they would turn on him.
07:59 Yes, Triple H, the leader of the group, had a mock celebration only to show him who was
08:04 truly in charge.
08:06 The beatdown at the hands of Evolution was supposed to propel Randy Orton into a fighting
08:11 champion babyface good guy, but not soon after, it just wouldn't click.
08:15 He would drop the title to Triple H, and plans, reportedly for some type of big WrestleMania
08:20 rematch between the two, were off the table.
08:22 Perhaps his natural persona had him leaning towards a heel in the hearts and minds of
08:27 fans.
08:28 He wasn't one you wanted to cheer, but was certainly someone you would be entertained
08:31 by, and you would look forward to those dreadful things he would pull apart on the good guys.
08:36 And when it came time for him to play the babyface character, fans just didn't buy
08:39 into it.
08:40 As Randy's popularity waned, Batista's star soared to unprecedented heights with
08:45 this, and Randy's position to end Triple H's reign of terror as WWE champion went
08:50 to the animal Dave Batista instead.
08:52 Randy began acting arrogantly towards the fans and having arguments with them.
08:57 He wasn't good for the PR of the company.
08:59 He wasn't acting or anything.
09:01 That's who he was.
09:03 He was a 24-year-old behaving that way, and he gained him fame and fortune sooner than
09:08 most people in the business.
09:10 At WrestleMania 21, Randy was supposed to face The Undertaker, and just a few days before
09:15 their match on Friday, Randy stayed up all night and partied with his friends.
09:20 Because of this, he wasn't able to make the rehearsal for the match.
09:25 Randy didn't just miss any rehearsal, he missed one with The Undertaker for a WrestleMania
09:30 match.
09:31 Yeah, a lot of people were disrespected, but the Deadman gave him the pass.
09:35 As if that wasn't enough of a problem, the night before that epic match with The Undertaker,
09:40 he had to honor the legacy, the family legacy that got him into the position he was in,
09:46 inducting his father, Cowboy Bob Orton, into the WWE Hall of Fame.
09:50 But even at his own confession, Randy says he was not 100% clear-headed when he gave
09:57 his father a 90-second induction speech.
10:01 In this same A&E biography, a cameraman can be heard right near Randy Orton asking him
10:07 to sit up, and he kind of alerted the audience that maybe he just wasn't all there.
10:12 It's also hard to process this in retrospect, because that match at WrestleMania 21 was
10:17 a show-stealer.
10:18 That's right, Orton was still delivering bell to bell, but his life outside of the
10:22 ring was the complete opposite.
10:25 Orton continued to be a menace, both inside the ring and outside of it.
10:29 Around 2006, he was having issues with substance abuse and painkillers, and he was suspended
10:35 for 60 days for violating WWE's wellness policy in the spring of 2006, and then was
10:41 sent off to rehab.
10:42 Speaking about his suspension on Steve Austin's Broken Skull Sessions, Orton said, "That
10:47 60 days happened for reasons, and then during those 60 days, I did some other s--- that
10:52 kind of landed me in a spot where I needed some help.
10:55 And I got the help, and I came back, and I still wasn't right."
10:58 Randy Orton's issues outside of the ring started to pile up.
11:01 There were stories of him throwing oatmeal at a Cracker Barrel, ripping a urinal off
11:06 the wall in a bathroom the first time he met Cody Rhodes.
11:10 During a European tour in 2007, he reportedly drank so much that he found himself passed
11:15 out inside his hotel room, which looked like it was hit by a tornado.
11:19 The damages reportedly came to well in the tens of thousands of dollars.
11:23 WWE made him cover the cost and sent him home for his unprofessional conduct.
11:29 Randy would receive mentorship from his friends within the locker room.
11:33 According to Randy himself, Edge helped him a lot when he was dealing with his demons.
11:38 This must have been around late 2006-07 when they were teaming up as Rated RKO.
11:44 He got back into a position, winning the WWE Championship, and had some of his best rivalries
11:49 of the Ruthless Aggression Era against John Cena.
11:53 It was during this period that Randy unveiled a more savage persona, introducing his signature
11:57 move, the punt kick, and even delivered that punt kick to big names like Vince McMahon.
12:03 When the boss wants to put you over, you still have a strong position in WWE.
12:08 This new iteration of the character was taken from his real personality.
12:13 When he was in rehab in 2006, doctors identified signs of anger management problems and traits
12:18 of a narcissistic personality disorder.
12:21 In his documentary, Randy stated that he has incorporated these elements into his wrestling
12:26 persona.
12:27 The legend killer wasn't meant to last long, and Randy needed to change and adapt and prove
12:32 an ideal character that could evolve.
12:35 Fans could sense the genuine intensity and unpredictability that Randy Orton expressed
12:40 physically in his performances.
12:43 Knowing this, they stemmed from real life experiences.
12:46 It appeared as though Randy Orton was channeling all of those frustrations into his in-ring
12:51 performances, and as a result, the trouble inside him became trouble for anyone else
12:55 he was in the ring with.
12:57 Orton's villainous persona became even more psychotic and vicious in the ring.
13:01 His willingness to push boundaries that before had never been broken.
13:05 His anger spilled over into unscripted incidents, from lashing out at his opponents in the ring
13:11 to heated confrontations backstage.
13:14 Orton's real life conflicts occasionally erupted in front of live audiences.
13:19 Randy Orton in 2009 would form the trio of Legacy with Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase, two
13:25 other men who came from wrestling families.
13:28 The group truly elevated Orton's status as a top heel in the company, but the faction
13:33 lacked a clear, long-term direction and seemingly fizzled out within a year or so.
13:38 It did turn Orton, though, into a babyface, with Cody and Ted turning on him, and this
13:43 time, the good guy act would stick a little bit longer.
13:46 He wasn't getting into trouble all that much outside of the ring, his life was starting
13:50 to straighten out, and fans were behind him now as he proved himself valuable talent to
13:54 them and those in the locker room over the years.
13:57 In 2010, he would win the WWE Championship, this time as a babyface, and had a pretty
14:03 strong run.
14:04 In 2011, he would win the World Heavyweight Championship, and that was an amazing feud
14:08 with Christian, some really underrated matches there.
14:10 This character was still the same, he was acting psychotic, but arguably controlling
14:16 the inner craziness for his performances, and now his targets were the bad guys, and
14:20 fans loved seeing an RKO out of nowhere.
14:23 Randy Orton was riding high on this success, but in 2012, it was reported by SuperLuchas.net
14:29 that he was suspended for the WWE Wellness Violation another time and suspended for 60
14:35 days.
14:36 This was connected to marijuana and performance enhancing drugs, not so much painkillers.
14:41 WWE considered releasing Randy Orton reportedly around this time from his contract, but that
14:46 didn't happen, and Orton came back to the company once more.
14:49 Randy Orton's second wife Kim would play a crucial role in reshaping Randy Orton the
14:54 Man.
14:55 In his A&E documentary, he acknowledged that Kim was a calming influence in his life that
15:00 helped steer him on the right track once more.
15:02 Although her presence was an unwavering point of support, Kim helped Randy confront his
15:07 demons and embrace a more positive path in life.
15:10 Moreover, the responsibilities of fatherhood also contributed to Randy's transformation.
15:14 Welcoming children into his life proved to him that he had a newfound sense of purpose
15:19 and motivation to leave behind a troubled past.
15:22 In the past few years, Randy Orton, whether he's been playing a bad guy or a good guy,
15:26 has shown class.
15:28 Class in the ring, class outside of the ring.
15:31 This is, that we're seeing right now, the best Randy Orton.
15:35 Remember 2016, Shane McMahon getting knocked out in the Survivor Series?
15:39 Despite being a villain at the time, Orton, ever the professional, was able to find Shane's
15:44 children at ringside and calm them while still performing in the multi-man chaos of the match.
15:51 It's an act that maybe we wouldn't have seen from Randy Orton in the past, or maybe
15:55 something that whittles down the core of who he truly is.
15:59 Not that wild man that maybe had gotten him into trouble, but the centered one who's
16:04 making him the Hall of Famer we're sure he's going to become.
16:07 Randy Orton's journey in life and in professional wrestling serves as a reminder that no matter
16:12 how troubled one's past may be, you can always come back stronger than ever, and maybe
16:17 give life an RKO out of nowhere.
16:20 [MUSIC PLAYING]
16:23 (upbeat music)