The Big Show and Andre the Giant are two of the greatest giants in wrestling history.
Standing over seven feet tall and weighing over 400lbs each (even higher during their peak weights) the pair towered over the rest of the world and in the ring.
Big Show was even said to be Andre The Giant’s son during his time in the WWE, but is that true?
Is Andre The Giant Big Show’s Dad?
Andre the Giant is not the Big Show‘s Dad. While both men suffer from the same condition that caused their gigantic size (acromegaly), and both men became legendary wrestlers who held, among other titles, the WWE Championship, they are not related at all.
Andre the Giant, or André René Roussimoff as his real name was, was born in Grenoble, France. He was a proud Frenchman and billed as such, but wrestled all across North America and Japan, where he made his name as one of the world’s most popular wrestlers.
He even made it to Calgary’s Stampede wrestling, and you can read about Andre the Giant and Bret Hart by clicking below.
Meanwhile, The Big Show (or as he’s known in AEW, Paul Wight) was born in South Carolina in the United States.
While it would not be impossible for Andre the Giant to father Big Show while travelling the United States in 1972, it simply is not true. Big Show’s real name is Paul Donald White II, as his father is the first Paul Wight.
However, you would not be a fool for thinking that Andre the Giant is the Big Show’s father. In fact, it was promoted as such on a major national television programme in the start of Big Show’s career.
Big Show is Andre the Giant’s Son?
In 1995, Big Show signed for WCW under the name “The Giant”. The Giant was a clear reference to the legendary Andre the Giant, who had passed away two years prior in 1993.
On WCW TV, The Giant debuted and immediately defeated Hulk Hogan to win the WCW Champion in just his first ever professional wrestling match. It was a incredible feat that, for good reason, has never been repeated in WCW or WWE before.
However, to add more to his character other than “is a giant”, WCW has the genius idea to fake some wrestling ancestry in Big Show’s past. It was an obvious one to do, given his stature, but so obviously not true that it seemed pointless to do so.
WCW claimed that Andre the Giant was Big Show’s father. This was due to both men sharing the “The Giant” name, with WCW officials perhaps believing that Andre the Giant’s last name is actually “The Giant”.
The familial link was short lived and was not mentioned much after Big Show’s 1995 debut. His connection with Andre was simply that the pair were both tall, although Big Show revealed the inspiration he took from Andre the Giant on an episode of Steve Austin‘s podcast.
Andre The Giant never wrestled for WCW, but his final ever TV appearance was at WCW’s Clash of Champions XX event.
Big Show and Andre the Giant will go down as two of the greatest giants in the history of wrestling and although they were never related by blood, will forever be linked by their stature in and outside the wrestling.
However, Andre the Giant is not The Big Show’s father.
Is Andre the Giant the Big Show’s father? Let us know if you knew the answer in the comments or click below to read more