With WrestleMania 41 just around the corner, all sorts of wrestlers past and present are flooding to Las Vegas to participate in all the activities planned for the weekend. Not all get the honor of directly being involved in a WWE event, but one unexpected name is in the mix this year. Dylan Postl, known as Hornswoggle when he was a superstar, will be there and couldn’t be more thrilled to be back.
Postl, who has spent his time since leaving the WWE working in indie circuits and advocating for the rights of other little people in the entertainment industry, will appear under his in-ring name once again for the first time since his release in 2016. The superstar spoke about appearing at Fanatics’ WWE World and what the moment meant to him on his X account:
As I head to Vegas a lot has hit me. In 2016 I was released from WWE, my dream job, and thought it was all over. The first phone call I made was to my dad and the thing I took away most was him saying “Dylan, never burn a bridge. They allowed you to live your dream for 10 years, and you did it!” That stuck with me for now almost another 10 years. Now, I know I’ve done a couple appearances here and there but this is different. This is WrestleMania week. This is almost 10 years after being released. They called ME and asked ME to be apart of WrestleMania week. So as I’m about to board the flight, with Landon along for the surreal ride, I’m taking every second in. Whether this is the first of many to come or the final bow of sorts, this is going to be incredible. For the last 9 years I’ve been “Swoggle” but even if it’s only for a couple days, it feels great to be HORNSWOGGLE again. I hope to meet each and every one of you at The World on Friday. Thanks!
classic Christmas episode, which remains one of my favorite episodes the WWE has ever done, so much so that I want to watch it with my Netflix subscription as soon as it’s available.
What I ultimately hope is that the WWE finds a way to bring back Hornswoggle and incorporate the legend back into the fold, if possible. CinemaBlend has spoken with the cast ofBig Little Brawlers about the lack of representation for little people in the highest levels of professional wrestling. While I think it’s fair to say the business hasn’t always treated little people well, there is a call for more representation.
Bringing back Dylan Postl as Hornswoggle provides an opportunity for representation and allows the WWE to incorporate some older talent into its main roster. There’s been a lack of throwbacks in this new era of wrestling, though that might be because the company is struggling to find time for its younger superstars. Even so, if Postl gets a lot of positive reception at WWE World, you’d have to think people internally at the organization would think of how to use him more.
The WWE has seemingly been investing in bringing back past superstars lately, as Big E recently confirmed that Rusev is returning to the company and may even appear on WrestleMania weekend. I think there’s value in bringing them back too. We’ll see if Triple H and company feel the same, as we start seeing guys like Hornswoggle popping up in the WWE beyond just convention halls.
WrestleMania 41 kicks off on Saturday, April 19th, and will conclude on Sunday, April 20th. Clear your schedule and get ready for what should be the greatest weekend of wrestling this year, or at least that’s the hope!