Stone Cold Steve Austin is arguably the biggest star in the history of WWE, and one of the ways he earned that distinction is by retaining some measure of creative control. He was always reasonable -- save for that one night he took his ball and went home, and that's based on his assessment years later, not mine -- but he wouldn't just accept whatever he was asked to do.
In the years since his retirement, he's maintained that attitude. That's why you always hear him talk about "the perfect scenario" in regards to having one more match. He would do it, sure, but the circumstances would have to be right.
The same goes for guest appearances, like the one he made at WrestleMania 30 when he kicked off the show in a segment alongside Hulk Hogan and The Rock.
Here's the thing, though: WWE swerved him.
Apparently, the old "Texas Rattlesnake" agreed to one thing, then they flipped the script on him. He explains in a recent interview with Ring Rust Radio:
"What was sold to me was Hulk Hogan goes to the ring, then The Rock goes to the ring, then Stone Cold goes to the ring. So what I was sold and what happened were two different things. Be that as it may, it turned out as it did, I had a hell of a lot more stuff that I wanted to say in regards to a promo, but they presented that on the day and I went with it because if you get to perform at WrestleMania, the time should go to the guys and the gals who are going to be working the matches in the ring, so that they can all tell their stories. So I went along for the ride. I have a lot of respect for Hulk Hogan, The Rock is a friend of mine and I have a ton of respect for him, and when you get three cats like us in the ring, it was truly a good time, and I think everyone there enjoyed it. I actually pitched to Vince in the back that I wanted to sing Jambalaya. It's an old Hank Williams song and he shot that down. He didn't think it would get over and I think there are some copyright issues or whatever, but could you imagine 70-80 thousand people singing Jambalaya; it would've been bad ass. But what you should have heard was me singing Jambalaya to Vince in the dressing room with Triple H pacing back and forth getting ready for his match. It was pretty damn funny."
No matter who came out in what order or what they weren't allowed to do, that segment was a home run.
And because you're surely wondering, yes, he answered the question about a return:
"I'd consider anything if the perfect situation or opportunity arose and it would be more than a million dollar question. I don't want to sit here and promote a match, sell a match, or talk about making a comeback. ... People get their panties in a wad and say, ‘Stone Cold, either do it or not'. So, anything can happen, but I'm not going to endorse, promote, sell, or tease anything in regards to a match."
Still hoping he comes back, Cagesiders? And what do you think of WWE swerving him at WrestleMania?