The Undertaker has told the story of how The Rock‘s iconic People’s Elbow finisher came to be.
The Undertaker has confirmed that one of The Rock’s most iconic moves, the People’s Elbow, was originally created to make him break character. Appearing on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, the WWE Hall of Famer was asked whether the move had been invented specifically to get a reaction out of him. Undertaker confirmed that was exactly the case.
“Yes, I think there was another conspiracy at the time to do something, so the guys did something really hokey. I think it actually started in a dark match somewhere.”
The Undertaker explained that, during that period, many of WWE’s biggest stars were constantly trying to make him laugh, knowing he was determined to stay in character.
“For a while there, it really became the thing to do to try to get me to break character. But what else would that be for? That’s the hokiest looking thing in the business.”
Triple H Also Said That The Rock’s People’s Elbow Was Created To Make The Undertaker Break Character
The story aligns with previous comments from WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H, who has recalled that talent would regularly try to crack The Undertaker during six-man tag team matches. According to Triple H, The Rock first performed the exaggerated elbow as part of one of those attempts before it unexpectedly caught on with fans.
What began as an inside joke quickly became one of professional wrestling’s most recognisable signature moves, with crowd reactions growing each time The Rock performed it.
Despite the repeated attempts, The Undertaker maintained his reputation for never breaking character, something that became legendary within WWE throughout his career.
The Rock has previously credited WWE Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes‘ Bionic Elbow as the inspiration behind the People’s Elbow, which remains one of the defining moves of his Hall of Fame career.
