Wrestlers wearing face paint can often bring a lot of excitement and mystery to a character, and it instantly makes the talent wearing it seem even more interesting to the fans. For some talents, face paint is done weekly as part of their gimmick while for others it can be reserved for a one-off special occasion.
Throughout the 2010s there has been a wide variety of different face paint used across WWE, AEW, and around the world, some of which have looked fantastic and will be memorable, meanwhile, there are others that were forgettable. When face paint doesn't work, it can leave people looking foolish, but there were some great pieces of creativity throughout the decade to balance it out.
10 Best: Finn Balor
Finn Balor isn't someone who wears face paint every week, but when he does, it is something truly special. Not only does his paint look incredible, but it completely transforms who Balor is, creating a completely different persona which is something that very few wrestlers can do.
Balor's Demon character is incredibly popular and always brings a special feeling when he decides to bring it out. It's not just paint on his face either as it normally extends to his chest and back which helps to make it feel even more special.
9 Worst: Retribution
Retribution as a faction was a complete disaster from the moment that it fully debuted, and a big reason for that was their appearance. The goofy masks and random face paint didn't help to make him look menacing, which was the overall aim for them.
The problem was that the face paint had the complete opposite effect on them. When face paint makes fans laugh at a character rather than take them seriously it's an issue, and that is what Retribution had to deal with here.
8 Best: Danhausen
Danhausen is someone who exploded in the wrestling world during this decade rather than the 2010s, but he was starting to make a name for himself at the end of the previous decade. A big part of that was down to his face paint as it was a style that instantly captured the attention of others.
Whether it is the iconic look that people are aware of now or the more demonic and horror-based face paint that he used before that, he was always making fans talk about him.
7 Worst: The Ascension
The Ascension as a tag team were supposed to be seen as legitimate threats, but their face paint never helped to make that a reality. They tried to create something that would allow them to be different, but having a random triangle on a forehead or stitches over a mouth wasn't the way to go.
Their face paint often looked too corny, and it wasn't something that added to their characters which is why people didn't notice when they opted not to put it on, which is never a good sign.
6 Best: Dustin Rhodes
Dustin Rhodes is someone who has put together great face paint over the years that have looked incredible, whether it was during his time in WWE as Goldust or working in AEW. Rhodes has always put on some fantastic face paint that has become iconic, but throughout the 2010s he started putting a renewed effort in.
Rhodes got very creative toward the end of his WWE run and that led to some fantastic face paint designs, and he then completely shook things up in AEW which continued to make him feel exciting.
5 Worst: Stardust
While Dustin Rhodes had fantastic face paint throughout the 2010s, the same cannot be said for his brother. A big reason for that was because Cody Rhodes' Stardust gimmick always felt like a copy of Goldust, and while that was the point it didn't help him at all.
There's no denying that Rhodes put a lot of effort into his face paint during this run, but it was an imitation that never felt unique. That is ultimately the biggest problem with Stardust and is why his face paint didn't work.
4 Best: Rosemary
Rosemary was one of the greatest Impact Wrestling stars throughout the 2010s as her character was so detailed and well-defined that it connected with fans perfectly. A big reason for that was the face paint that she decided to use which enhanced the gimmick.
Not only was it effective in helping make Rosemary's gimmick thrive, but she was able to change it up frequently, and that showed her commitment and desire to stand out.
3 Worst: Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho often tries to shake things up to keep his character exciting, and that is something he did when heading to New Japan Pro-Wrestling. He created his Painmaker character which did work because he was far more aggressive, and it felt unique, but the face paint he decided to add didn't click.
The awkward lines painted over his eyes and the messy display were supposed to enhance his character, but overall it just looked foolish. It wasn't something that helped Jericho, and it wasn't needed either.
2 Best: Darby Allin
Certain wrestlers can take their face paint and make it iconic to the point where people in the crowd will put it on and display it in the crowd. Only a few wrestlers can reach that point, but Darby Allin is one of them as his unique half-face paint is something that looks fantastic.
Allin puts a lot of effort and detail into the face paint that he creates, and that helps to capture the interest of fans. On top of that, Allin often shakes things up and makes small tweaks to his paint which keeps it fresh, but the main reason it works is that the paint adds to his overall gimmick.
1 Worst: Mojo Rawley
Sometimes a wrestler will throw face paint on in a bid to create a completely different character without any real rhyme or reason. Things don't get explained and instead, they just think that will make the impact needed, and this was the case with Mojo Rawley.
He ended up with small blue cracks all over his face which was seemingly leading to something different for him that never truly materialized. Instead, Rawley ended up looking foolish with the paint, and it didn't have the impact he had hoped.
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