38-year-old AEW star recalls first pitch with Triple H for popular WWE character
Former WWE Superstar Aleister Black (now known as Malakai Black in AEW) recently revealed the intricate details of his wrestling character and recalled pitching his gimmick to Triple H back when he was in NXT.
The former champion of WWE's third brand was one of the unique gimmicks presented on television at the time. Aleister Black's in-ring skills and intimidating run in NXT added to his dominant title reign, earning him a top spot in the list of fan favorites.
Black opened up about his character during his recent appearance on The Undisputed Podcast. He revealed that he has always been fascinated by Lucifer's story, particularly intrigued by the room for redemption left in his tale.
Black shared that he discussed this at length with Triple H while pitching the idea behind his gimmick that would come to be seen as Aleister Black on NXT and then on the WWE main roster. He was quoted as saying,
"I've always been obsessed with that idea. So when I pitched the idea for Aleister to [Triple H], (...) I said, 'The idea that I have is — what if Lucifer was cast out, and he fell down, and (...) he woke up, and he had no idea who he was. But he knew that he did something awful, but he couldn't put his finger on it. He knew he did something so heinous, so bad, that no matter what he did, he has this quiet urge to redeem himself. But he doesn't know why. And that's the conversation me and [Triple H] started having about (...) the Aleister character." (H/T WrestlingInc)
Black also revealed that he wasn't everyone's favorite backstage in WWE. He was deemed 'The Chosen One' in NXT, which isolated him from others. The 38-year-old admitted to not having many friends backstage but accepted that the industry was like that at the time.
Top babyface wants her husband back in WWE
WWE Superstar Zelina Vega was recently asked if she would like to see Aleister Black back in the promotion. The LWO member said she wants it to happen and would love any extra time she would get to spend with her husband.
Vega also shared that the couple has recently conquered a colossal milestone, achieving the dream of building their house.
She is one of the top babyfaces in the women's division and has indeed asserted her prominence in the championship picture. It would be interesting to see what's next for Zelina Vega as she continues strengthening her LWO role.