Roman Reigns Hated WWE Storyline But “Had To Be A Good Soldier”
Roman Reigns was less than impressed with one WWE storyline.
The break-up of The Shield in 2014 remains one of the most shocking moments in modern WWE history. For two years, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Dean Ambrose demolished all in front of them, becoming one of the most dominant factions the company had ever seen.
However, that all changed on June 2nd, 2014 when Rollins smashed Reigns in the back with a steel chair to align with Triple H and The Authority. The betrayal resulted in Roman Reigns’ move into being a singles star and the biggest babyface in the company — or at least that was the plan. Despite WWE’s best efforts, fans eventually rejected Reigns as a babyface, and his career wouldn’t hit top gear until his now-famous heel turn in 2020.
During the A&E Biography: WWE Legends episode on his career, Reigns said he didn’t want The Shield to break up and didn’t want to be a babyface. But, being just two years into his main roster career, he felt he had no choice.
“I didn’t wanna break up The Shield, and I damn sure didn’t want to be a good guy. That’s exactly what was happening. I was so young on the rise. It’s not like I had a nest egg built up. It’s not like I had a whole bunch of options that I can just say ‘No I’m not feeling this. This doesn’t feel good to me or I wouldn’t say this.’
It was so hard to do that when you don’t have that backup, when you don’t have that ‘fuck you’ money, and you can’t just stand on your art and your family is depending on you. Your livelihood is depending on you. You have to just be a good soldier and do what you’re told,”
Roman Reigns Retired In 2020
Speaking in a recent interview, Paul Heyman claimed Roman Reigns retired in 2020 before beginning his run as the Tribal Chief. As the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, Reigns announced he would be stepping away from WWE for health reasons shortly before WrestleMania 36. He wouldn’t return until SummerSlam.
“But every week I heard all the SmackDown writers and producers and personnel saying, ‘God, I just wish Roman would come back.’ And I would ask, has anybody talked to him? Yeah, he says he’s retired. He’s not coming back. No way. Thanks a lot. Done. Finished. Goodbye.”
Roman Reigns will be back in action on night one of WrestleMania 40 when he teams with The Rock to take on Seth Rollins and Cody Rhodes. The following night, Reigns will defend the Undisputed WWE Universal Title against Rhodes.
H/t to Fightful