Former WWE star Jimmy Wang Yang has detailed one element of his character that was too offensive, and was told to remove it by The Undertaker.
James Yun returned to WWE in 2006. Previously known as one of Tajiri’s henchmen, Akio, Yun was given a completely different character that he has become best known for.
On SmackDown, vignettes played to promote the arrival of Jimmy Wang Yang, the Asian redneck. While the character would not work in the modern era, there were also aspects of the character that were offensive 20 years ago.
While speaking with Chris Van Vliet, Yang looked back on his vignettes and some of the lines he was told to say. While those in the company found some of the lines funny, Yun found it to be offensive to his culture:
“Yeah, that’s really because they didn’t know how the audience was gonna react to me. But it was different times. When I see it, I kind of am ashamed of some of the stuff that they wanted me to say, because it is like, ‘Oh it’s funny when you say it because you’re half Korean. I couldn’t say it, but you can say it because you’re Korean.’ No, it’s gonna be funny to you guys. I understand what’s going on. I say this is funny to you guys. But for my culture and my people, it is offensive.”
The Undertaker Forced Jimmy Wang Yang To Remove Offensive Item
Later in the interview, Van Vliet asked Yun what the most offensive part of his character was. Yun recalled a brief period where he wore the Confederate flag on his back, as he thought it was linked to the redneck lifestyle, citing the popular show Dukes of Hazard. However, Undertaker told Yun that the flag has a more offensive meaning, and told him to take it off. When Yun was asked where the flag had gone, the former WWE star responded Undertaker told him to remove it, which received no pushback:
“The most offensive thing is me wearing the Confederate flag on my back. They said ‘Hey, we want you to be an Asian redneck.’ Okay, what do you think of? I think of rodeos. I think of NASCAR. I think of Dukes of Hazard and General Lee. I’m like, Oh yeah, I’m an Asian redneck, so I gotta wear the Confederate flag on the back of my vest and go out there. But if anybody knows what that symbolizes, it’s God awful, and it’s horrible. I wish I hadn’t done that. Undertaker is the one that told me. He saw me wearing it, ‘Jimmy, take that f*cking sh*t off!’ I said I’m playing a character, an Asian redneck. ‘That sh*t means some horrible sh*t. Take it off.’ All right. Then I take off, and they said, ‘Hey, where’s your jacket at?’ [I replied] ‘Undertaker told me to take it off.’ Okay.”
While once a symbol of the Southern states during the American Civil War, the Confederate flag is now linked to slavery and white supremacy.
Also during the interview, Yun spoke about his theme song used during the Jimmy Wang Yang era. Despite being a popular song among fans, the former WWE star admitted he was not a huge fan of it:
“I know people love that theme song, but I hated it. I hated it as a wrestling theme because I couldn’t get fired up to some bluegrass. I was like, Man, how am I supposed to get fired up to this song? I need to get fired up for this match that we’re about to have. But it is a good song when you’re sitting on the porch and all that kind of stuff. But as wrestling music, it was kind of too slow for me.”
Yun last competed on the independents in January 2025. His daughter Jazzy Yang is also a wrestler, and is currently competing on the independents.
Featured image: WWE
