On a recent edition of “The Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling” podcast, former WWE Superstar Mansoor discussed concerns about the Maximum Male Model gimmick being potentially perceived as an LGBTQ+ gimmick by WWE’s partners in Saudi Arabia.
In Saudi Arabia, LGBTQ+ activity is prohibited under law.
Mansoor said, “When Vince came back from his retirement, we were getting messages from the creative team like, ‘Hey, we wanted to put you in this backstage segment, but somebody’s a little concerned that the portrayal of the character may offend certain important partners to the company. So I was kinda reading between the lines.”
Mansoor recalled what Vince McMahon said about their characters at the time. He stated,
“When Vince McMahon told us that we were doing this male model thing, he was very serious, ‘Listen, it’s not a gay thing. Okay. Not a gay thing. You’re metrosexual.’”
The Maximum Male Model gimmick was essentially dropped last year and both Mansoor and Mace were released from their WWE contracts in September.
