Since his debut on the main roster in 2012, Roman Reigns has swiftly become one of the top stars in WWE. However, his relationship with the fans is far from straightforward, setting him apart from other superstars.
Many have compared him to John Cena, such as becoming one of the company’s faces. However, a large part of the comparison is how the fans view him. Many love him, many hate him, but he can be looked at as one of the new faces for the children’s fans. He also rose incredibly fast to the top of the company.
Reigns has one of the most complicated and delicate relationships with the fans than any other superstar. He is one of the few superstars where, no matter heel or face, no one enjoyed seeing Reigns on television. He used to be constantly ‘booed’ by the audience, but now he is one of the most adored superstars among the fans.
What led to the drastic shift in fans’ perception of Reigns, from disapproval to chanting ‘We want Roman’ every week? His ability to evoke strong emotions in the audience, whether positive or negative, is rare. What has changed in recent years for fans to alter their opinion on Reigns?
The Shield
Let’s start at the beginning of his career. Reigns made his WWE main roster debut alongside Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins at Survivor Series 2012. To this day, they are arguably one of the most dominant factions in WWE: The Shield.
They were heels for most of their time together from 2012-2014. The Shield attacked legends such as John Cena, Randy Orton, CM Punk, Kane, Daniel Bryan, and many more. They were attacking these legends and cheating to win, making it easy for them to be disliked by the audience.
The audience quickly knew who The Shield was after their debut, and they were always remembered. Despite their role, they captured the audience’s attention every time they were in front of the crowd. Whether it was cheers or boos, noise was made for The Shield, showing the crowd’s engagement.
Towards the end of their run together, they officially turned face for the last month. Until Seth Rollins made one of the most historic heel turns in WWE history, stabbing Ambrose and Reigns in the back with numerous chair shots and joining The Authority.
This heel turn from Rollins made Reigns and Ambrose some of the top faces in the company during their new singles careers.
Believe That
Reigns was immediately pushed to main event status and received various title opportunities. As a face in the company, the goal is to get the audience behind you, which Reigns had initially, but there were some areas he needed to improve in as a singles competitor at the time.
Reigns has always looked like a top superstar, but he had to find his way as a singles competitor. The audience is no stranger to vocalizing their opinions, which they did in the case of Reigns.
From the end of 2014 until 2018, Reigns was heavily disliked by the audience, even though he was a face. This was due to his lack of character depth and ability to cut an intriguing promo. WWE consistently pushed him to be on top despite what the audience thought of him or what other superstars they would like to see get an opportunity.
One of the most significant moments in Reigns’ career was winning the 2015 Royal Rumble match. Even with the help of his cousin, The Rock, Reigns was still ‘booed’ by the crowd in this career-defining moment, even though he was also supposed to be one of the biggest faces in the company.
I have already mentioned that the fans were frustrated by this win for various reasons. Many felt that a more decorated and developed superstar could’ve had the opportunity. It was also frustrating to fans, considering how they vocalized that they didn’t like the use of Roman Reigns, but it was consistently overlooked.
Reigns’s push always kept up despite the crowd’s opinion. It led him to face and defeat one of the most legendary superstars in professional wrestling history.
The Streak: 25-2
Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns. The only two people to have beaten The Undertaker at WrestleMania.
The streak is so legendary in the wrestling community that its ending is controversial. Many still debate whether it should’ve been untainted, but at the end of the day, streaks are meant to be broken.
However, it was shocking to see not just one person stop the streak but two. At WrestleMania 33, Roman Reigns beat The Undertaker in a no-holds-barred match, becoming the second person to defeat The Undertaker at WrestleMania.
It made sense for Lesnar to beat Undertaker because he was a heel, but Reigns was a face. He was already struggling to get the audience to cheer him as a face, and defeating The Undertaker isn’t the way to get the audience to cheer you. It is impressive, but considering how many people love The Undertaker, no matter who beats him, they will most likely get ‘booed.’
The Monday Night Raw (4/3/2017) following WrestleMania 33, Reigns was booed for nearly ten minutes straight since he defeated The Undertaker. Reigns continued being a face on television even though they made it harder for fans to like him by beating a legend like The Undertaker. It was shocking, but all they could do was move forward.
Time Off
Reigns continued having a rocky relationship with the fans despite his efforts to be a top face in the company, even after winning his Universal Championship over Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam 2018.
A few months later, on Monday Night Raw (10/22/2018), Reigns shocked fans by announcing the return of his leukemia. The segment started with mixed emotions from the audience, with them thinking it would be just another promo. It ended with many people crying and chanting, “Thank you, Roman.”
Months later, on Monday Night Raw (2/25/19), Reigns announced that his cancer was in remission. Fans would start returning for him from this point forward for various reasons.
Even though the audience wasn’t always Reigns’s biggest fan, there has always been respect for him. He gained more respect from this situation by beating leukemia and continuing to pursue wrestling afterward. This shows how important WWE is to him and how much he truly loves the business.
All fans want to see is someone who wants to be in the business for the right reasons; how Reigns was consistently getting pushed made it confusing whether it was because of Reigns’ passion or because it was best for business. However, seeing him return nearly six months after leaving shows his love for the company.
Reigns coming forward with his struggle with leukemia also pulls down a barrier to him. We saw more than “The Big Dog;” we saw Joe Anoa’i. We saw a father, a friend, and a cancer survivor. Instead of seeing an untouchable Roman Reigns, we saw the human behind the character.
He began appealing to the audience more as he became relatable. He was also pushed to role model status compared to John Cena despite Cena’s absence from the company.
The Bloodline
At SummerSlam 2020, Reigns returned after being out of action for five months due to the coronavirus pandemic and the birth of his twins. With this return, Reigns possessed an entirely new attitude, laying out The Fiend and Braun Strowman. For the first time since his Shield days, we will see a heel Roman Reigns.
He returned with hall of famer Paul Heyman by his side. This couldn’t have been a better decision, where Heyman could pick up not only where Reigns was lacking in promos but also where Heyman is one of the best heel wrestling advocates in the industry.
Considering his heel run began during the pandemic, it was difficult to hear how fans truly felt since they had fans in attendance via Zoom and would record audio for the audience.
Once The Usos began competing with Reigns, The Bloodline was born. Going back in front of a live audience in 2021, Reigns finally got the reaction that a heel would want; he was constantly getting booed. They all played the ‘bad guy’ role perfectly, having Heyman as their spokesperson and cheating to win.
The Bloodline only grew when Solo Sikoa became involved, and they quickly became one of the most dominant factions in the company until 2024.
Original Tribal Chief
The fans booed Reigns, but after WrestleMania 40, nearly every week, they chanted, “We want Roman.” Once Sikoa took over The Bloodline, he realized that only Reigns could stop him.
Reigns made his first appearance since WrestleMania 40 at SummerSlam 2024. I can’t remember the last time that Reigns had received a reaction that loud and positive. He cost Sikoa the WWE Championship, starting a feud between The Original Tribal Chief and The Tribal Chief.
It will be interesting to see Reigns back in the babyface role, as he has been a heel for the past four years. It will also be interesting to see how the fans respond. So far, he is receiving a good response from everyone, but he needs to keep it up.
Compared to 2014, when he began his singles career, Reigns has shown tremendous character growth. Time is something that he needed to get over with fans. It felt like in 2014, he needed more character development, but he was expected to be the face of the WWE. Fans realized he wasn’t ready then but is more than prepared now.
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