Rewind twenty-five years, and WCW was at an interesting point in its journey. The company had enjoyed some remarkable highs that included a famed eighty-three weeks of Nitro beating Raw in the cable ratings, not to mention surging popularity on the back of the nWo angle.
By 1999, however, the wheels were starting to come off. WCW had the juice to negotiate a partnership with Kiss as one of the biggest bands in the world at that time. The deal included the launch of The Kiss Demon as a wrestling character and was actually intended to culminate in a unique presentation that was titled New Year’s Evil.
The Concept Behind The WCW New Year’s Evil Idea
WCW New Year’s Evil Would Have Happened On December 31, 1999
- The event would have been split between a Kiss concert and a wrestling event.
- WCW had the resources and clout to still be a credible partner to Kiss at that point.
- Working with a rock band like Kiss followed the template WCW had set up for cross-promoting with other rock brands.
The concept had some merit, or at least it would have in the not-too-distant past. Despite creative woes and cracks in their business model, WCW had actually enjoyed the heights of its financial success as recently as 1998. Moreover, Kiss truly was a major draw as a band. For a wrestling company that had combined monster trucks, Sturgis motorcycle rallies, NFL and NBA stars, and other hypermasculine endeavors with their in-ring product before, a Kiss crossover on the momentous occasion of the year rolling over to 2000 had real potential.