"I don't relate to them" - Vince Russo says many top stars are better off without their WWE gimmicks (Exclusive)
Professional wrestling has evolved tremendously in the social media era as fans are now more familiar with the wrestler's off-screen personality, and Vince Russo believes that the real-life personas of WWE Superstars are more relatable than their gimmicks.
He spoke at length about the topic on this week's Legion of RAW. Russo watched a few old videos on WWE's YouTube channel in which wrestlers broke character, including the first-ever no makeup photoshoot featuring top female stars.
The former WWE writer also came across two clips highlighting the backgrounds of Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens, and Russo ended up liking the superstars he usually hates every week after RAW.
"Here's the next video I watch, 'My son's a WWE Superstar,' and who is it, bro? It's Seth Rollins. And all of a sudden, I'm watching this, and I'm like, wait a minute. I like this guy. I would be behind this guy. I would support this guy," revealed Vince Russo. "Then, bro, the next one, Kevin Owens, and mom and dad. Okay, I get it now. His dad brought him the WrestleMania 11 tape; now I understand and actually like Kevin Owens." [11:36-12:16]
Russo said that the very same talents aren't compelling enough when they appear as part of WWE programming and blamed the company's creative shortcomings for the problem.
"Meanwhile, bro, what I get on TV are the same people that are so unreal, so unbelievable; they're not even human beings. I don't relate to them in any way whatsoever, and I'm sitting here as the former head writer of RAW, and I'm like, bro, what is so difficult? Like, what are you guys missing?" questioned Russo. [12:17-12:49]
What would Vince Russo do if he was still a part of WWE's creative team?
Vince Russo helped develop many iconic characters as WWE's head writer in the Attitude Era, and he detailed how he would have dealt with the current crop of talent.
The former WWE personality said that he would personally sit with each superstar and get to know their true identity before structuring a wrestling character for the cameras.
Russo felt that certain wrestlers were miscast in their existing roles. He couldn't grasp why Vince McMahon and his team weren't getting the fundamentals right.
"If Vince Russo is there, I'm sitting down with Rhea Ripley; I'm having that conversation," explained Russo. "I'm sitting down with Bianca; we're having that conversation. Seth Rollins, and I'm seeing who really is a babyface at heart. Who is really a heel at heart? I'll be honest with you; you watch that YouTube thing, Carmella and Corey, you can't stand either one of them. Like you literally, you don't like these people. I don't understand it, Chris. I genuinely cared about these people, yet I tuned into the show; I couldn't give two craps." [12:49-13:32]
Legion of RAW (3/28): WrestleMania Go-Home Show w/Vince Russo, Seth Rollins' Opponent Set twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1…
Do you agree with Vince Russo's observations about stars and their gimmicks? Is WWE getting the entire creative process wrong? Let us know your opinion in the comments section.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Sportskeeda Wrestling and embed the Legion of RAW YouTube video.