During the WWE SummerSlam 2023 post-show press conference following Roman Reigns’ victory over Jey Uso in the ‘Tribal Combat’ match for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, Paul Heyman engaged with the media, discussing the evolving richness and complexity of the Bloodline storyline. He also compared Roman Reigns’ transformative impact on wrestling to Marlon Brando’s influence on acting.
Addressing concerns about the Bloodline storyline’s pace, Heyman dismissed the notion of it’s dragging on, emphasizing the continuous unveiling of layers within each character. He cited the ongoing process of exploring dynamics within the group and beyond, using Sami Zayn as an example. When asked about the potential dissolution of the Bloodline, Heyman humorously speculated about his own age at that point. He said,
“The Bloodline disbands? There already? That’s it? There are no more stories to tell? We already know why Jimmy did what Jimmy did, we already know what’s going on with Solo and Roman Reigns, we already know where the wiseman Paul Heyman stands, we’ll do it all on Friday. Calm down with the progression of the storylines. We’ve been doing this for three years and not once have I heard a credible person say, it’s dragging on. It doesn’t drag on. We continue to layer and peel back layers and reveal more about each persona, and just when you think you have the persona figured out, there is something new to learn about that person and their dynamic within the other people in the group and sometimes it involves people outside the group, like Sami Zayn. What will I do when the Bloodline disbands? I don’t know, I’ll probably be celebrating my 120th birthday by then.”
Drawing a compelling parallel, Heyman likened Roman Reigns to Marlon Brando, explaining that Reigns, like Brando’s influence on acting, has fundamentally reshaped the wrestling industry. He asserted that Reigns has redefined the genre to such an extent that others in the locker room are striving to understand and replicate the path that led the Bloodline to its current prominence. Heyman said,
“I once heard Edward Norton trying to describe what Marlon Brando did to acting, and Edward Norton said that Marlon Brando tilted the axis of how an actor approaches his craft and to me, that’s Roman Reigns. He has so completely redefined how we approach this industry, this genre, I truly in my heart don’t believe that anyone in that locker room right now is in the same genre as Roman Reigns. I think they’re all trying to figure out how he got, how the Bloodline got to where he is.”
