Danhausen (wrestler)

Early life

Donovan Danhausen was born in Detroit on August 17, 1990.

Professional wrestling career

Independent circuit (2013–2020)

Danhausen was trained by Jimmy Jacobs and Truth Martini. He made his debut on October 18, 2013, becoming known for sticking to a gimmick illustrated by his spooky attire and painted face. He competed at BLP Slamilton 2, an event produced by Black Label Pro Wrestling, where he teamed up with Ethan Page and Swoggle to defeat Blood Diamond (Jake Lander, Joshua Bishop and Tre Lamar) for the BLP Tag Team Championship. He competed for Capital City Championship Combat at C4 Combat Shock - 12th Anniversary on November 21, 2019, where he defeated Tony Deppen.

At FU/Freelance I Don't Think We're In Chicago Anymore from October 10, 2020, an event produced by Freelance Underground Wrestling, Danhausen teamed up with Warhorse as Warhausen, defeating The Brothers Of Funstruction (Ruffo The Clown and Yabo The Clown) by disqualification, therefore failing to capture the FU Tag Team Championship. At F1RST Wrestling Saturday Night Nitro, an event produced by F1RST Wrestling on March 7, 2020, Danhausen fought Orange Cassidy into a no-contest.

Ring of Honor (2019–2021)

Danhausen made his first appearance for Ring Of Honor at ROH Wrestling #429 on November 2, 2019, where he unsuccessfully challenged Shane Taylor for the ROH World Television Championship. He continued to make sporadic appearances such as at ROH Wrestling #437 where he fell short to Rhett Titus on January 11, 2020, and at ROH Honor Reigns Supreme 2020 on January 12, where he scored a defeat against Dak Draper. At ROH Free Enterprise on February 9, 2020, Danhausen participated in a 20-man battle royal to determine the no.1 contendership for the ROH World Championship, where he competed against the winner Flip Gordon, Gangrel, PJ Black, Tracy Williams and others. At ROH Final Battle 2020 on December 18, he defeated Brian Johnson by disqualification, earning him an ROH contract (behind the scenes, Danhausen credits Alex Shelley with convincing ROH brass to sign him). At ROH 19th Anniversary Show on March 26, 2021, Danhausen competed in a four-way match, falling short to the winner, Brian Johnson, Eli Isom and LSG.

All Elite Wrestling / Return to ROH (2022–present)

Danhausen made his All Elite Wrestling (AEW) debut during a special episode of Dynamite called Beach Break on January 26, 2022. He appeared during the Lights Out match between Orange Cassidy and Adam Cole. Hours later, AEW President Tony Khan announced that Danhausen had signed with the company. He began having interactions with Hook. On the May 11, 2022 episode of Dynamite, Danhausen wrestled in his first ever AEW match, losing to Nese following a distraction from Sterling. After the match, Hook would align with Danhausen after saving him from a beatdown from Nese and Sterling. The new tag team would make their debut on May 29 at the Double or Nothing Buy-In, defeating Nese and Sterling. Since then, Danhausen has allied himself with Orange Cassidy and the Best Friends. Danhausen was off AEW and ROH TV for all of 2024, but returned at ROH Final Battle at the Hammerstein Ballroom.

In August 2025, Danhausen requested his release from All Elite Wrestling (AEW), but the company extended his contract which reportedly runs into 2026, and was enacted to cover the time he missed due to a torn pectoral muscle in 2023.

Professional wrestling style and persona

The character of Danhausen is an eccentric, theatrical professional wrestling persona defined by humour, absurdity, and self-aware performance rather than athletic prowess. The New York Times has described Danhausen as "a ghoul, maybe, or some kind of gremlin" who "wears makeup that looks as if he’s in a silent film about KISS". Danhausen has described his character as "Conan O'Brien possessed by a demon", which led Danhausen in April 2021 to appear as a guest on O'Brien's podcast Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend to explain the character. The character wears horror-themed face paint and believes he has supernatural powers, such as shooting lightning from his fingers and the ability to put curses on his enemies. Initially, the "curses" seem not to work, but inevitably, in camp fashion, some terrible, improbable mishap occurs to his opponents. The voice for his character is based on O'Brien and Mark Hamill's Joker. He often refers to himself in the third person, adds the suffix "-hausen" to words, is interested and motivated by money and power, chastises other wrestlers if they use profanity, and describes himself and things he likes as "very nice, very evil". He is also known for nonchalantly dancing a "Pee-wee Herman dance" to the song "Tequila" in the middle of matches. His movements are deliberately awkward and exaggerated, and he engages audiences through pop-culture references and showmanship. Physically unimposing at 5-foot-10 and 175 pounds, his persona contrasts this with exaggerated claims of size and power.

Other ventures

In collaboration with the Rootless Coffee Company, Danhausen launched a signature coffee blend called Danhausen Coffeehausen in 2021. Like many wrestlers, Danhausen has trademarked his ring name and catchphrases ("Love that Danhausen" and "Very Nice Very Evil"). In addition, he has trademarked the design of his face paint. The attorney who represented him in this matter, Michael Dockins (who works in conjunction with wrestlers so often he is nicknamed the "Gimmick Lawyer"), believes this to be the first time a wrestler has trademarked his physical appearance.

Personal life

Danhausen married Canadian burlesque dancer Lauren Jiles, known professionally as Lou Lou la Duchesse de Rière, in 2018. He is the stepfather of her daughter. In July 2025, the two welcomed a son together.

Championships and accomplishments

• All Elite Wrestling
  • Casino Tag Team Battle Royale (2023) – with Orange Cassidy
• Black Label Pro
  • BLP Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ethan Page and Swoggle
• Full Impact Pro
  • FIP Florida Heritage Championship (1 time)
• Insane Wrestling Revolution
  • IWR Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with PCO
• Metro Wrestling Alliance
  • MWA Michigan Championship (1 time)
• Over The Top Wrestling
  • OTT No Limits Championship (1 time)
• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • Ranked No. 158 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2020
  • Ranked No. 171 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2021
• Ring of Honor
  • ROH Year-End Award (1 time)
    • Best New Star (2020)
• Slammasters Wrestling
  • SMW Championship (1 time)
• Figure Wrestling Federation
  • FWF Tag Team Championship (1 time, final) – with Bobby Orlando

''Luchas de Apuestas'' record

References

References

1. Internet Wrestling Database (IWD). "Donovan Danhausen • Profile & Match Listing". profightdb.com.
2. (7 February 2020). "Danhausen - Gerweck.net".
3. Haulotte, Kellie. (October 31, 2020). "ROH officially signs Danhausen". wrestlinginc.com.
4. Barrasso, Justin. (April 19, 2020). "Coronavirus Shutdown Leaves Independent Wrestlers Struggling to Make a Living—and Find Purpose". si.com.
5. Saalbach, Axel. "Danhausen/General Information". wrestlingdata.com.
6. Danhausen. (August 17, 2020). "What a wonderful 3030th birthday this has been! Thank you to all of Danhausens nice and evil friends, family, Fanhausens and of course Danhausens lovely wife @missloulou514 who made this terrific cakehausen.".
7. Kreikenbohm, Philip. "Danhausen-Personal Data". cagematch.net.
8. Greer, Jamie. (November 12, 2019). "Preview: Black Label Pro – Slamilton 2 (11/16/19)". lastwordonsports.com.
9. Capital City Championship Combat. (December 4, 2019). "#C4CombatShock – 12th Anniversary Official Results".
10. DuBay, Dennis. (October 8, 2020). "The Collective: Freelance Wrestling Presents "I Don't Think We're In Chicago Anymore," preview.". bumwinebob.com.
11. Smart Mark Video. "F1RST Wrestling March 7, 2020 "Saturday Night Nitro" - Roseville, MN". smartmarkvideo.com.
12. Cook, Ryan. (December 19, 2019). "ROH Wrestling Television Results for 12/6/19 Episode #429 ROH World Television Championship Match". fightful.com.
13. White, Chris. (February 6, 2020). "Three-Way Boogie – ROH Wrestling – Episode 437 Review". wrestlingsc.com.
14. The Smackdown Hotel. (January 12, 2020). "ROH Honor Reigns Supreme 2020". thesmackdownhotel.com.
15. Haulotte, Kellie. (February 9, 2020). "ROH Free Enterprise (2/9) Results: Marty Scurll & PCO Vs. Nick Aldis & RUSH". wrestlinginc.com.
16. Ring Of Honor. (December 2020). "12/18/20 - FINAL BATTLE". rohwrestling.com.
17. (14 May 2021). "Danhausen - Out of Character Interviewhausen". Audio Ventures, Inc..
18. Jason Powell. (March 26, 2021). "3/26 ROH 19th Anniversary PPV results: Powell's live review of Rush vs. Jay Lethal for the ROH Title, Jonathan Gresham vs. Dak Draper for the ROH Pure Championship, Matt Taven vs. Vincent, EC3 vs. Jay Briscoe, Kenny King and Bestia del Ring vs. Tracy Williams and Rhett Titus for the ROH Tag Titles". prowrestling.net.
19. Khan, Tony. "Danhausen is All Elite".
20. (9 April 2022). "Danhausen attempts to put a curse on Hook".
21. Barnett, Jake. (2022-05-11). "5/11 AEW Dynamite results: Barnett's live review of Darby Allin vs. Jeff Hardy, Adam Cole vs. Dax Harwood, and Toni Storm vs. Jamie Hayter in Owen Hart tournament matches, Ricky Starks vs. Jungle Boy for the FTW Title, CM Punk vs. John Silver, Danhausen vs. Tony Nese, MJF and Wardlow contract signing for Double Or Nothing". ProWrestling.net.
22. (April 19, 2021). "Conan Inspired This Fan's Wrestling Character - "Conan O'Brien Needs a Fan"".
23. Harris, Jeffrey. (May 11, 2021). "Danhausen Explains How His Character Is Based in Reality". 411Mania.com.
24. Jericho, Chris. (July 16, 2021). "Danhausen Has Teeth".
25. "Meet & Greet with Danhausen".
26. Brooks, Dan. (10 January 2023). "How Danhausen Became Professional Wrestling’s Strangest Star". [[New York Times]].
27. (15 August 2021). "The Story of Danhausen".
28. "DANHAUSEN Trademark of Donovan Danhausen Serial Number: 90301133".
29. "LOVE THAT DANHAUSEN Trademark of Donovan Danhausen Serial Number:90861201".
30. "VERY NICE VERY EVIL Trademark of Donovan Danhausen Serial Number: 90904754".
31. "(NO WORD) Trademark of Donovan Danhausen Serial Number: 90303521".
32. (5 April 2021). "Tampa's 'Gimmick Attorney' helps wrestlers trademark their characters". Times Publishing Company.
33. (23 March 2022). "Trademark Everything! Pro Wrestling Patent Lawyer Mike Dockins". Audio Ventures, Inc..
34. (October 3, 2018). "MEET THE NEW BURLESQUE QUEEN OF NEW ORLEANS". 21st Century Burlesque Magazine.
35. Rowe, Daniel J.. (June 5, 2020). "COVID-19 has closed burlesque curtains everywhere. When and how can it come back?". CTV News.
36. Wrestling Titles. (November 1, 2019). "Full Impact Pro Florida Heritage Title (Florida)". wrestling-titles.com.
37. https://www.cagematch.net/?id=5&nr=5261
38. "MWA « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database".
39. "Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) 500 for 2020". profightdb.com.
40. TESSIER, COLIN. (8 February 2021). "Complete List of 2020 ROH Award Winners".
41. "GCW Crime Wave 2024".