The Rock discloses original plans for him and Roman Reigns at WrestleMania XL; why WWE pivoted
The Rock has elaborated on what the original plans were for him and Roman Reigns at WrestleMania XL and why they were changed.
The Great One made a shocking appearance on the February 2 episode of SmackDown, where he confronted his cousin. Cody Rhodes, who had just won the Royal Rumble match, handed his spot to the wrestling legend. This caused a lot of backlash online, as fans wanted The American Nightmare to finish the story. As a result, the plans changed significantly, which saw The Final Boss turn heel and join The Bloodline instead.
Speaking at the WrestleMania Saturday post-show press conference, The Rock stated that after that confrontation he had with Roman Reigns, he came up with an idea of how they should pivot and give the fans what they wanted.
"It became crystal clear to me after Birmingham, Alabama, where we had that moment in the ring. We came in, Cody in essence passed the opportunity on to me. Roman and I had that face-off and it was just a few days after that-that I was in Hawaii and I remember waking up [snaps fingers] and going, I think I have what this pivot should be. And that is not only listen to the fans but let's give them what they want and what they've invested in for the past couple of years now, which is the idea of Cody Rhodes completing his story," The Rock said.
He added:
"But then the B side to that, the exciting part for me, number one, was to deliver something for the fans but also, well now let's make a change. Let's go Rock 10.0 and what that looks like, what final boss looks, and let's take the agreement and the deal and the appointment of the board as a director... Let's utilize that and leverage that in a real way. And that real influence and power, and inject it into the storyline." [From 11:10 to 12:47]
Check out the video below:
The Rock emerged victorious in his first WWE WrestleMania match since 2016
At WrestleMania Saturday, The Brahma Bull made his in-ring return in front of over 72,000 people. This was his first match since WrestleMania 32 in 2016, where he defeated Erick Rowan in six seconds.
The Rock and Roman Reigns Layeth the Smacketh Down on Seth Rollins and Cody Rhodes. The Bloodline emerged victorious after The Final Boss pinned The American Nightmare. However, it's not over yet, as they still have things to settle at WrestleMania Sunday. It'll be interesting to see what pans out at the event.
If you use the quotes in this article, please credit WWE and add an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.