Roman Reigns shocked the pro wrestling world when he pulled out of his WrestleMania 36 match due to concerns about the pandemic (and the fact he's immunocompromised due to previously battling leukaemia).
We didn't know when or if the Big Dog would ever return to WWE, but when he did so in 2020, it was with Paul Heyman by his side. From there, he embarked on an incredible heel run as the Tribal Chief which led to the creation of The Bloodline and some of WWE's strongest storytelling in recent memory.
Talking to Uproxx, Heyman revealed that before Reigns' shocking comeback, he'd pretty much decided to hang up his wrestling boots for good.
"He considered himself retired. He wasn’t coming back," the Wiseman explained. "I was executive director of Monday Night Raw, and Roman was assigned to SmackDown. 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."
"So the fact that he came back for this run, for what we have accomplished, is nothing short of a miracle because as far as he was concerned, he was out."
As for how he's factored into the Head of the Table's most successful run at the top, Heyman added, "I was blessed with the opportunity to collaborate with the top star in the entire industry, the WrestleMania main event eventer, the biggest box office attraction in sports entertainment, the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world, on a biography that documents what it’s like for him to be living that life at this very moment."
"This is not just another top guy. This is the person that disrupted the status quo," he continues. "This is a man of such vision and pursuit of greatness that he lifted this entire industry out of the pandemic and into unfathomable heights."
This year's Show of Shows will be a big one for both Reigns and Heyman. The former will headline both nights of WrestleMania, first in a tag team match with The Rock against Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins, and then when he defends his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against the American Nightmare.
Heyman will be by his side for that, of course, but is also being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
"My goal now is to make everyone regret putting me into the Hall of Fame this year," the ECW creator exclaims. "Because the run from ’65 when I was born to 2024 pales in comparison to what I do from 2024 on. Otherwise, what am I doing? I’m accepting a Lifetime Achievement Award and I’m doing a run that people go, ‘Hey, he should have gotten out while the getting was good.’ And that’s not me."
He'd go on to say that he finally accepted the offer to be inducted this year because WrestleMania is in "Philly and that’s a unique opportunity." Heyman then added, "Roman Reigns is headlining both nights of WrestleMania. So to accept this Hall of Fame award while still ruling from the Island of Relevancy is such a unique opportunity, I’d be a fool not to accept it."
Needless to say, Heyman's induction speech has the potential to be the best-ever...