– During a recent edition of AEW Unrestricted, “The Dynamite Kid” Tommy Billington spoke about adopting the Dynamite Kid moniker of his late uncle. Billington revealed that Bret Hart convinced him to use it before he made his AEW Dynamite debut. Below are some highlights (via Fightful):
Tommy Billington on Bret Hart convincing him to use the Dynamite Kid nickname: “Actually, I was never going to use the moniker Dynamite Kid. It was actually up until two weeks before AEW before I started using it. I was really funny about using it because I didn’t want people to get the wrong impression that I’m just leeching off that sort of name just to boost [myself]. I always thought, I want to make a name for myself. So for the longest time, I just went by Tom Billington. Two weeks before my AEW debut, I was in Bret’s house just having dinner with him. He told me, ‘Tom, I really think you should use that Dynamite Kid name. It’s your name too because you look so much like him, you talk like him, you even walk like him.'”
On how much he reminds Bret Hart of the old Dynamite Kid: “I reminded him so much of him that it scared him a little bit. So, at first I was kind of like, I get where you’re coming from Bret but I really don’t want to. It took like weeks of him being like, ‘I urge you to use it, it will do you good and people won’t ever doubt you. They’ll see how you work, just like him.’ After a few weeks, I was like you know what, I’ll give it a test run. Two shows of using it, it got really over and people were like, yeah, no doubt, you look so much like him.”
On many people saying how much he looks like his uncle: “I get it everyday, you look so much like him it freaks me out, it takes me back to the 1980s with Stampede Wrestling. So when AEW was like [putting me on] Dynamite and Collision, of course I’ll use it. Ever since, it’s been the best decision I’ve ever made to be honest with you.”
