Reliving the Best WWE Pranks Ahead of Cody Rhodes & The New Day On Scare Tactics

It's no surprise that the WWE Universe — and countless WWE Superstars — love pranks, which is why everyone is excited for Jordan Peele's Scare Tactics premiering on USA Network on October 4!

In honor of the exciting new series debut, we're looking back at some of the best pranks in recent WWE history that live rent-free in our heads. It will be an exciting walk down memory lane for many fans — but this season on Scare Tactics, the WWE Universe will receive a gift like no other. You see, some of your favorite Superstars — including the Undisputed WWE Champion — will be making an appearance on Scare Tactics!

It's simple, really. No target is off the table, including WWE Superstars The New Day, who find themselves at the heart of a paranormal occurrence during a run-of-the-mill promo event with fellow Superstar Cody Rhodes.

It will be a prank nobody will forget anytime soon. But until then, let's examine some of the best Superstar pranks in WWE history.

The Boogeyman Goes on a Scaring Spree

OK, so technically these are jump scares rather than pranks, but let's face it: any time fans can see their favorite WWE Superstars be genuinely frightened is considered a prank in our book!

The Boogeyman debuted on SmackDown in 2005 and instantly weirded out the entire WWE Universe. He was a larger-than-life nightmare come to life — and his penchant for eating live worms by the hundreds made him even more unsettling! While The Boogeyman didn't exactly climb up the ranks with his in-ring skills, his legacy will always be based on how he made fans — and his fellow Superstars — feel outside the ring.

His unexpected backstage return just in time for Halloween in 2023 caused everybody in the backstage area to be on edge — in fact, we're pretty sure Zelina Vega was permanently scarred for life!

Kofi Kingston Catches Xavier Woods Asleep Backstage

The fun-loving New Day are no strangers to pranks — and sometimes they can't help but turn the tables on each other.

The prank was shockingly straightforward: Xavier Woods took advantage of some downtime during a television taping to catch a quick nap. So in a way, there's no reason why Kofi Kingston shouldn't have doused his teammate with soda while he was sleeping!

Sometimes, the simplest pranks are the most effective! At the very least, Woods knows better than to catch some shut-eye in a public space again.

A Miz & Morrison Prank Goes Wrong

Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time! During a memorable pranking moment on SmackDown in 2020, The Miz and John Morrison had one goal in mind: embarrass the then-Universal Champion, Braun Strowman, by dumping slime on him when he's in the middle of his backstage interview with Kayla Braxton.

The dastardly duo commandeered a production truck to make it happen, and everything was going according to their dastardly — albeit immature — plan. There was one problem, though: Morrison didn't know the difference between "left" and "stage left," leading to a bucket of green slime being dumped all over Kayla! 

Somewhere, poor Kayla is still finding pieces of slime in her hair.

(And for anyone wondering, the list of WWE Superstars who've had slime dumped on them on Raw or SmackDown is a mile long.)

Sasha Banks Dons a Zombie Disguise

Who can forget the time Sasha Banks — with the help of an expert makeup artist — turned into a zombie backstage at Monday Night Raw and scared the heck out of countless Superstars? The multi-time champion's makeup was on point as she made it her mission to freak out as many of her co-workers as possible.

Spoiler alert: she accomplished her mission!

Not even her real-life bestie, Bayley, was safe from the terror known as Zombie Sasha. And in case you're wondering, it wasn't even Halloween when Sasha decided to go on her scaring spree — it was August! 

The Rock Gets the Last Laugh — Again

To best appreciate this prank, we first need to take you back in time — to 1997!

Before he became the megastar we all know him as, The Rock was part of a faction known as The Nation of Domination. In a classic Monday Night Raw moment, he decided to give his fellow NODers watches as a show of his appreciation — except for Ron Simmons (Faarooq), who received a portrait of The Rock instead. It was the ultimate sign of disrespect from The Rock, to say the least.

Flash forward 20 years later, and during an epic Table For 3 WWE Network Exclusive featuring Simmons, Mark Henry, and The Godfather — The Rock ran the prank back one more time.

"Again? Didn't we go through this once?" asked Godfather.

"Do you believe this?" said Simmons as he showed off yet another smiling portrait of The Rock that he had been given in lieu of a fancy watch.

Godfather and Henry cracked up laughing — and so did the WWE Universe. Talk about a callback!

Catch up on WWE SmackDown on Peacock now and catch Scare Tactics on USA Network October 4.