Carlito’s apple-spitting gimmick is one of the most memorable character traits of its era, but the fan reaction to it went to a place that even he found strange. In a recent conversation with D-Von Dudley, the former WWE superstar revealed that people have offered him money for the unique experience of being spat on.
The offers became a frequent and bizarre occurrence for him.
“I get that all the time. People go, ‘Will you spit in my face? I’ll pay you, bro.’ Like, why would you—why would anybody want that?”
What began as a simple act of disrespect on screen evolved into something fans actively sought out. Carlito noticed that instead of being disgusted, audience members began treating the apple spit as a badge of honor, creating a strange dynamic during his appearances.
“It’s weird—people were kind of like, felt honored or excited. Like, ‘Oh, I’m getting the apple spit!’ Like, oh yeah.”
The gimmick itself was born from a vignette, but it was Vince McMahon who recognized its potential and instructed Carlito to make it a permanent part of his character.
“That [the apple spit] came from the vignette… that I spoke of earlier. And it was Vince that saw it… and he liked that, and he told me to keep on doing that.”
However, making the spit visually effective for television was more complicated than it looked. Carlito explained that he developed a specific technique to get the right consistency, ensuring it would show up clearly on camera. It was, as he described, a genuine art form.
“There’s actually an art to it—cuz you can chew it too little, and then it comes out in big chunks and for TV, it doesn’t look like anything. Then you can chew it too much, and it just turns into liquidy kind of thing, right? So, it doesn’t show up well. So, if you get the mixture—you get big chunks, couple of soggy chunks, and it just—you know, you get a nice little mix.”