It's no secret that, early in his WWE career, The Miz experienced bullying and hazing from some veterans. The late Chris Benoit was reportedly among the main perpetrators, banning The Miz from the locker room and generally tormenting him after he supposedly ate chicken in there.
Despite having to change in public restrooms, The Miz persevered and eventually became one of WWE's biggest mainstream stars and a Grand Slam Champion.
Talking to Chris Van Vliet, The Miz—who has since become a staunch supporter of anti-bullying campaigns—reflected on those early years, and, while he stopped short of naming Benoit, he did explain what happened when "that person went away."
"I was like, oh boy, how am I gonna get back in the locker room? So I had to wait another three months. I asked Taker. I was like, 'Man, I've been out of the locker room for a long time.' He goes, 'Oh, you have?' Yeah, I've been out like six months. 'What'd you do?' I ate a piece of chicken in the locker room, and it got all over. I still believe it did not, but other people will tell you differently, and they can have their opinions. That is fine. I was under a microscope of, let's get this guy."
"It was so ridiculous. I'm a grown man, and people are always like, 'Why don't you fight them? Why don't you stick up for yourself?' Because back then, if I would have done something like that, I probably would have been fired, or I looked at it as if I stand up to this person who is a locker room leader and very respected, and the reality guy steps up and talks and mouths off at that person, they're never going to teach me. I need them to teach me. I'm not going to learn this."
"I knew I needed reps with stars, with main eventers so I could wrestle like a main eventer. I can watch all the footage I want of it. But there's a difference between watching it and actually doing it. Everyone can watch it, not everyone can do it."
The Miz made his WWE debut on Tough Enough in 2024, meaning he's been part of the company for two decades. Many of his friends and colleagues have been released during that time, and the former WWE Champion admitted that he worries about getting that same call.
"Yeah, honestly, every time there's a release, I'm like, Oh no, is it me?" he admitted before opening up on saying goodbye to one of his closest friends, Dolph Ziggler, when he was released in 2023:
"That was a tough one for me to see him go, because it was kind of like the last of my really core group of friends. I have friends, obviously, in the locker room, but that was my core group of friends. I was like man, I’ve had such great matches with Dolph too. Him putting his career up and me the IC Title. That whole IC title reign he was a big part of elevating that title as well. During that time for me, and so to see him go is tough, but that’s the name of this business, it happens, those type of things happen."
"For me, this is going to sound very cocky and arrogant. I know how valuable I am. I know how good I am, and whether the audience sees it or not, I know people know. If you’ve wrestled me, you know. So yes, there’s always in the back of your mind, 'Oh, is it me? Is it me? Is it me?' But then there’s also that other part that goes, 'I’ve done a lot in this business, and I still got more.'"
You can hear more from The Miz in the player below.