The Attitude Era professional , like the 1980s wrestling boom , made wrestling more popular in the United States from the late 1990s to early 2000s . Television ratings and pay-per-view buy-rates reached their highest points . Similar to the 1980s professional wrestling boom , the Attitude Era was a surge in the popularity of professional wrestling in the United States from the late 1990s to early 2000s , as television ratings and pay-per-view buy-rates hit record highs .