Photo Credit: Roman Reigns (Instagram)
Roman Reigns has made a significant leap in his career after turning heel in 2020 and introducing the Tribal Chief character to the WWE universe. The previous version of him as a babyface struggled and was criticized for having little charm. However, Roman Reigns’ aura has been elevated incredibly since 2020, proving himself to be the most impactful personality in the squared circle today.
There could be several reasons behind his increased aura. He exudes confidence while cutting promos as a villain. At SummerSlam 2024, he returned as a babyface, but he managed to carry the same self-believe after changing the role. Let’s discover the possible contributing factors behind Roman Reigns’ natural charisma in WWE in the past few years.
1) Paul Heyman’s Influence
Paul Heyman is renowned as one of the greatest wrestling managers in history with decades of experience in handling mega stars and elevating their status in different ways. He is a wizard with a brilliant creative mind. Apart from Roman Reigns, Heyman’s clients list includes the names The Undertaker, CM Punk, Brock Lesnar, Kurt Angle, Big Show, and Rob Van Dam.
In the 1990s, Heyman owned ECW, where he groomed several wrestlers for the big stage, notably Stone Cold Steve Austin, who credited the veteran manager for his growth before signing for WWE.
Similarly, Roman Reigns’ association with Heyman has proved to be a masterstroke by WWE. Immediately after returning from the hiatus in 2020, Heyman began managing Roman. Paul would talk more in the initial days of their association but with the growing confidence on the mic, the Tribal Chief started showing his sharpened microphone proficiency eventually.
2) Years Of Experience As A Performer
The former WWE Champion’s athleticism is impressive in WWE. Roman Reigns’ football career, which almost culminated in the NFL, helped him shape him as an in-ring performer in the squared circle. While he was always a remarkable athlete, he lacked the required charisma and microphone skills to thrive at the top level.
When he had the solo run as a babyface, Reigns struggled with his promos, with his opponents schooling him while talking numerous times, most notably John Cena. He spent years having the lackluster mic skills and eventually worked on it.
After spending more than a decade at the top level in WWE, Roman Reigns’ aura has grown to a different level, assisting him to reach the proclaimed ‘god level.’ Whether as a heel or face, he beats everyone in terms of charisma.
3) The Historic Championship Reign
Roman Reigns’ professional wrestling career peaked when he won the second Universal Championship of his career, beating The Fiend and Braun Strowman at Payback 2020, marking the beginning of a ground-breaking world title run that lasted three and half years or 1316 days.
Reigns’ confidence was boosted significantly during this title reign. He was indomitable, beating several big names in the industry. Even though The Bloodline played a crucial role in keeping him a champion, he solidified himself as the biggest star of this era.
With the title on his shoulders, the Original Tribal Chief began showing a natural charisma, earning the love and respect of the audience. His incredible champion reign is the longest world title tenure in the modern era.
4) Less Scripted Promos
Professional Wrestling’s promos are scripted but since the beginning of the PG Era, especially under Vince McMahon, every wrestler had to follow every line of the script. However, once Roman started his epoch-making title reign, his promos were less scripted compared to earlier, making it a reason to excel more on the microphone.
Earlier, in his babyface phase, the six-time WWE World Champion Roman Reigns’ delivery of promos wasn’t as polished as today. Moreover, on a few occasions, he forgot lines, infamously during his promo battle with John Cena in 2017.
Now, wrestlers enjoy more freedom while talking under Triple H, making it easier to showcase their personalities at full potential. WWE’s change of approach in producing less scripted promos is instrumental to the growth of Roman Reigns’ aura in recent years.
5) The Heel Turn Of Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns made a big career transition after unveiling his inner bad guy for the first time in his singles run as the Tribal Chief. That character shift has been a game-changer for him because he excels as a natural heel.
While some wrestlers flourish as a babyface and heel, with the likes of Hulk Hogan and John Cena being prime examples, Roman Reigns isn’t one of them. His tenures as a heel and babyface have been completely distinct.
Even when he was a heel as part of The Shield, he was seemingly more confident than the entire babyface run. Today, he isn’t a heel anymore, but he is an entirely babyface either, considering his eyes are still set on Cody Rhodes’ prize.
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Avik Das is an English Literature graduate with an experience of over six years as a professional writer. He has written for renowned publications such as The Sportster, Sportskeeda, Pinkvilla, and The Things
