The Ultimate Real American: Hulk Hogan's Bizarre 2003 WWE Run As Mr America

Whether it be the World Wrestling Federation, World Wrestling Entertainment, or simply WWE, the company has a long tradition of wrestlers who have donned the red, white, and blue and utilised patriotism for the United States of America as a major part of their act, whether it be Lex Luger, Kurt Angle, The Patriot, or even Nikolai Volkoff. 

One such act burned brightly for just a short amount of time, though, as Hulk Hogan, who had already spent decades with patriotism as part of his character, donned his own version of the red, white, and blue in 2003, embodying the fighting spirit of the United States, before the gimmick and Hogan’s latest run in WWE came to an end due to The Hulkster and Vince McMahon's latest falling out.

The Birth Of Mr America

In the aftermath of 2003’s WrestleMania XIX, a pay-per-view which saw Hulk Hogan defeat Vince McMahon to save his professional wrestling career, it turned out The Hulkster didn’t really win after all as Mr McMahon revealed his master plan: Hulk Hogan would be paid to sit at home and rot for the remainder of his WWE deal. 

Shortly after this, though, some very American vignettes began to air on SmackDown which signalled the arrival of a mysterious homegrown star - none other than Mr America. SmackDown GM Stephanie McMahon swiftly revealed that she had quickly signed Mr America to a water-tight, iron-clad blue-brand-exclusive deal “sight unseen” in order to prevent Eric Bischoff and Monday Night Raw from snapping up what was World Wrestling Entertainment’s hottest free agent. 

Those vignettes would lead to Mr America’s debut in the main event segment of the post-Backlash edition of SmackDown on May 1, 2003, as Roddy Piper’s guest on Piper’s Pit. Stupefying nobody, it was very much Hulk Hogan in a USA mask, from ‘Real American’ by Rick Derringer playing in the arena for the first time in years, to Mr America playing air guitar, to the feather boa, to Hulk Hogan's famous catchphrase of, “Let me tell you something, brother.” It was Hogan in everything but name, and it was done in order to continue the Hulk Hogan vs. Vince McMahon storyline, with Mr McMahon desperately spending weeks trying to unmask Mr America in order to prove he was Hogan and - consequently - void that ludicrous Mr America’s contract and get Hulk Hogan fired for good. 

This wasn’t a new wrestling storyline concept. The wrestler being cast out and returning under a hilariously obvious disguise to try and pull the wool over the promoter’s eyes was a tale as old as time. Dusty Rhodes did it in the early 1980s in the NWA as The Midnight Rider. Mid-South Wrestling had Junkyard Dog secretly return as Stagger Lee, while Brian Pillman lost a Loser Leaves WCW Match in 1991 and the rest of his dates were fulfilled by mysterious newcomer Yellow Dog. There was also John Cena’s one-night stand as Juan Cena after a kayfabe firing in 2010, as well as Chad Gable and Ludwig Kaiser as their respective versions of El Grande Americano in 2025 and 2026.

Why was 2003 the time for Mr America to be beamed across the United States on SmackDown, however? Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter at the time noted it was simply Hulk Hogan and WWE “jumping on the bandwagon.”

In 2003, patriotism for the United States was at a high point following the March invasion of Iraq by a US-led coalition, with the coalition forces capturing Baghdad in April, ending Saddam Hussein’s 24-year rule of Iraq, with a video of a giant iron statue of Saddam toppling over being beamed around the world.

On the day of Mr America’s debut on May 1, US President George W. Bush gave his infamous “Mission Accomplished” speech on board USS Abraham Lincoln to announce the end of major combat operations in Iraq. The war would continue until 2011, and US forces remain in Iraq to this day, as of the time of writing. 

Amidst the Iraq War beginning, and in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks which began George W. Bush’s wider War on Terror, WWE had been making frequent trips overseas to support American troops, meaning it seemed an open goal to introduce a new patriotic character on WWE programming. 

Mr America On WWE TV

The early weeks of Mr America looked to be a home run creatively for World Wrestling Entertainment. The new character got over huge in front of live fans, even in Canada where America-Mania ran wild as Mr America flexed his 24-inch pythons for all the America-Maniacs!  The company had a lot of fun in segments with him too, such as Hogan appearing via satellite in another US state talking about how excited he was to see Mr America on the show later, only for Mr America to arrive at the venue, proving it couldn’t possibly be Hulk Hogan unless The Hulkster had developed the ability to travel at the speed of sound. 

A fondly remembered segment was held on the May 29, 2003 episode of SmackDown as Mr America was forced to take a lie detector test to confirm his true identity, in which through carefully phrased questions and answers, he was able to pass with flying colours to continue the ruse that it wasn’t Hulk Hogan. Vince McMahon in the same segment, meanwhile, was confirmed by the lie detector to be a “sick, perverted, power-hungry freak.” 

In his desperation to unmask Mr America, Vince McMahon recruited Roddy Piper and his client Sean O’Haire to his side, but outside of a count-out win for the former Devil’s Advocate over Mr America, the heels would prove unsuccessful against the American hero. 

WWE even joined in on the fun that it wasn’t Hulk Hogan under the mask, producing an article where they tried to crack the mystery of who Mr America really was, suggesting it could be anyone from Mark Henry to Mr Fuji. 

The Mr America shenanigans would come at the right time for SmackDown, too. An injury curse and the absence of several key stars resulted in a leaner blue brand than normal, and to help the brand through the period, SmackDown was built around longer, safe wrestling matches with established talents while Mr America vs. Vince McMahon segments would fill out the remainder of the two-hour run time. 

The result was TV ratings that mostly held steady, reaching their highest of the Mr America era on June 12 with a show boasting a WWE Title match between Brock Lesnar and The Big Show, and Mr America in an arm wrestling contest with Mr McMahon.

The patriotic perils of Mr America also set out to create an unlikely new WWE star in Zach Gowen. A cancer survivor who could do more in-ring on one leg than many on the indy scene at the time could do on two, Gowen appeared on the May 15, 2003 episode of SmackDown as a fan rushing to the ring to save his hero Mr America from Roddy Piper, who would go on to attack Gowen and accidentally pull his false leg off in the process.

It would lead to Gowen returning to WWE TV and revealing his dreams of becoming a WWE Superstar, something that Mr America began to champion against the bullies like Roddy Piper and Vince McMahon, like a true American hero. 

Mr America being the guiding light of this young prodigy wasn’t originally on the cards, according to numerous reports and interviews. Gowen, who had joined WWE from TNA – after WWE had accidentally signed the wrong one-legged wrestler - was primed to be utilised in developmental. WWE Magazine, however, had an article on Gowen which was due to be published and Vince McMahon wanted to keep Gowen's signing a secret. This ultimately led to his first appearance being brought way forward to beat the impending hullabaloo, and Gowen ended up landing in the middle of a segment with Mr America and Roddy Piper. 

So, a gimmick steeped in Americana at a time when patriotism was at a high, a character and story that the fans in the arena were loving, and, as an offshoot, a chance to create new stars in WWE by existing in its orbit, everybody was happy with Mr America. Everyone except for Mr America himself. 

The Downfall Of Mr America

While he was featured on WWE TV under the mask, Terry Bollea had desires upon being back in the main event picture as WWE Champion.

An unexpected Indian summer for The Hulkster following 2002’s WrestleMania X8 saw Hogan capture his sixth WWE Championship, but it had also whetted Hogan’s appetite for further accolades. 

In the aftermath of dropping the WWE Title to The Undertaker at Judgment Day 2002, The Hulkster morphed into “Mid-Card Hogan”, a wrestler who made fun of his fleeting hair and his inclination to exaggerate old wrestling stories, who held tag team gold with Edge, and who willingly lost to Kurt Angle by tap-out and Brock Lesnar by referee stoppage.

However, that worm would turn in the autumn of 2002, as Hogan felt that he was the guy to face and defeat the newest top star in Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship at Survivor Series in Madison Square Garden. When McMahon disagreed, Hogan left, disgruntled with being blocked from a seventh WWE Title reign. 

Hogan would return a few months later, the Mr America storyline would be pitched, and he was up for it. In fact, an agreement had been reached with Vince McMahon and Hogan that Hulk wouldn’t sign a contract and if he was unhappy with the way things were going, he could leave of his own accord. Hogan seemed happy, though. It felt like his time away had been good for him as he once more found his stride in a silly new wrestling persona. 

However, Terry Bollea desired to be the centre of the universe, reportedly saying once again that he should be the guy to win the WWE Title, this time at SummerSlam 2003. That wasn’t what management wanted, though. Mr America was seen as one of the guys – but not THE guy in WWE.  

No more was that apparent than on an episode of SmackDown in June from Madison Square Garden, which would ultimately be the final match of Mr America.

A six-man tag team match was scheduled for SmackDown from WWE’s spiritual home, with Mr America teaming with Brock Lesnar and Kurt Angle to face The Big Show and Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin of The World's Greatest Tag Team. Hogan arrived at MSG with grand designs of this being a pivotal Mr America moment, in the same arena where he won his first WWF Title, that would see him begin a road back to the top of the card.  

Instead, he was informed that not only would this moment he dreamed up not be happening, but he would be taking the pin, getting distracted by Mr McMahon beating up Zach Gowen and leaving him open for a Big Show chokeslam. 

Hogan loved every inch of Madison Square Garden, but he rarely got to look at the lights there. He did on this night, though. In a shoot interview with the Honky Tonk Man - which should be taken with a pinch of salt - Hogan allegedly spent the afternoon complaining to any young talent that would listen about his plight of being pinned in the world’s most famous arena.  

The match went ahead as planned despite Hogan’s grumblings, but after SmackDown went off the air, Hogan got the last laugh, dispatching the heels and standing alone in Madison Square Garden. It was there, with the cameras off, that Mr America peeled back his mask and revealed his true identity to those live in the arena as Terry Bollea, keen to hear an ovation for Hulk Hogan, not Mr America, made what ended up being his final WWE appearance of this current run.

Hogan reflected on his stint as Mr America while speaking to Ringside Collectibles in 2022, saying: "I thought that Mr America was going to kind of do like the Midnight Rider thing that Dusty Rhodes did in Florida - be around for two, three years, mess up all the main events. When I got there, we had a six-man tag and of course, I thought Mr America was going to rock on and be a huge angle, and they said 'Hey brother, you're doing the job tonight.' And I went 'Hmm, I guess this isn't going very far' [...] I just figured they didn't like the gimmick, so at the end of the match, I kind of pulled the mask up, if you guys remember, and showed everybody it was me."

It wasn’t the first time Mr America had shown his true visage after a taping, but this particular reveal would prove to be a useful storyline tool for what happened next.

Hulk Hogan Quits WWE…Again

A few days after SmackDown aired from Madison Square Garden, Hulk Hogan was a special guest on The Bubba The Love Sponge Show, where he officially announced that he and WWE had parted ways.  

Hogan cited the six-man tag in Madison Square Garden as the straw that broke the brother’s back, but there had already been mounting issues. Hogan had no confidence in the creative direction of Mr America for quite some time. Not only was Hogan feeling unsatisfied creatively, but financially he was underwhelmed too.  

His WrestleMania XIX bonus had been paid, and it was significantly down from the previous year, and the years before that where he had made money hand over fist with shares of the gate at WCW pay-per-views. Hogan likened his $300,000 WrestleMania bonus to “Limo Driver Money”, scoffing at having to share the main eventers' royalties with Steve Austin, The Rock, Brock Lesnar, and Kurt Angle.

He didn’t like the script and he didn’t like the money, so Hulk Hogan exercised his right to quit the company. In doing so, though, Hogan had unwittingly handed Mr McMahon an excellent storyline conclusion in what would be his final match as Mr America.

Just one day before the United States celebrated their Independence Day on July 3, 2003, Vince McMahon walked out on SmackDown and, after running down the storyline, aired the footage of Mr America’s great reveal following the previous week’s episode of SmackDown. As it was Hulk Hogan under the mask, Mr McMahon declared Mr America’s contract null and void and fired Hulk Hogan.

The final loose threads of the Mr America storyline were tied up by having Zack Gowen team with Stephanie McMahon to defeat The Big Show and earn a WWE contract – before ending his feud with Vince McMahon via a match at the Vengeance pay-per-view. 

Had Hogan stuck around, and had Mr America stayed on WWE TV a little longer, he would have realised that whilst he was not in line for a WWE Title run that he so desperately wanted, he would have certainly factored into plans near the top of the card. A match between Mr America and The Big Show looked to be on the cards for Vengeance - possibly even Hogan and Zach Gowen battling The Big Show for Gowen's WWE contract, and from there plans were being put in place for Mr McMahon vs. Mr America in a Hair vs. Mask Match. An early pitch for this would have seen Mr America coming out on top, and Mr McMahon would have had his head shaved four years earlier and without future President Donald Trump. 

That is the complete story of Mr America. It started with a tired, battle-worn athlete being given a fresh new start in celebration of the Star-Spangled Banner, fighting forces who wished to strip him of his American identity. It ultimately fell apart, though, due to corporate greed and capitalism. An American tale as old as the country.