Why Major Randy Orton WWE Storyline With Shocking Twist Was Scrapped
A former WWE superstar has given insight into why a major storyline involving Randy Orton didn’t take place as initially planned.
There was no proper ending to the popular tag team known as RK-Bro. There were two reasons for that.
RK-Bro consisted of future WWE Hall of Famer Randy Orton and Matt Riddle, who worked for WWE for about five years until his September 2023 release. Together, they were two-time Raw Tag Team Champions for a combined 216 days, and they were one of the most popular acts in WWE when they were together from 2001 until mid-2022.
The reason RK-Bro is because Riddle was a unique stoner character known for strange things, while Orton is more of a stoic, serious babyface, yet he tolerated Riddle because of their success in the ring.
After they lost the Raw Tag Team Title to The Usos in May 2022, Randy Orton went on an extended break due to a serious back injury. Orton eventually had major back surgery and missed 18 months of action before returning at Survivor Series in November 2023. By the time Orton came back, Riddle had been gone for a few months, so they never had a proper breakup.
In a revealing interview with TMZ Sports, Matt Riddle revealed that WWE planned on having Randy Orton turn heel on Riddle, as Orton’s tendency to turn on allies is a characteristic he’s known for, having spent most of his career as a heel.
“Me and Randy are tight, you know. The story eventually, they originally wanted Randy to turn on me, and I go, I go, ‘Well, typical, that’s what Randy does. You know, that’s what Randy does.”
Matt Riddle Suggested A Twist On His Breakup With Randy Orton
After 20+ years in WWE, Randy Orton has earned the respect of the fans. Crowds all around the world sing his theme song when he makes his entrance, they chant “RKO” for him and they have grown to love “The Viper” even if he was a jerk for many years.
As Riddle talked about the potential RK-Bro split, he mentioned that WWE liked his idea of Riddle going heel on Orton, rather than the other way around.
“But at the end of the day, I was like, ‘Guys like, I’m new to the scene, still for WWE, especially compared to Randy, and if he turns on me, they’re not going to cheer for me. They’re going to boo me and cheer for the legend that is Randy Orton.’
So I was like, so if anything, I would like to turn on Randy. And Randy agreed. The office agreed. Now, granted, Randy got hurt and ended up leaving.
But, uh, yeah, I think the plan was originally for him to turn on me, but then when I explained what I thought would happen, they all agreed, and then they’re probably going to have me turn on Randy and turn heel. And I was very much looking forward to that, not just because of the matches, but being able to dive into a different version of my character.”
The RK-Bro split never actually happened, and it’s not known if WWE is interested in bringing back Riddle, who is continuing to wrestle in the independent wrestling scene.
Randy Orton was featured in a big match at WWE SummerSlam when he teamed up with singer Jelly Roll against Drew McIntyre and Logan Paul. Unfortunately for Orton, Jelly Roll lost the match for his team. Orton hasn’t appeared on the two most recent episodes of SmackDown since the loss.