Acknowledge Him: How Reigns Went From Hated Hero To Beloved Villain

Roman Reigns has had quite the career. Here, author ClownBall9 takes a look at how our Tribal Chief went from hated hero to beloved villain.

September 9th, 2010:

Roman Reigns would make his debut in Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW). This would be his very first televised match displaying unlimited superstar potential.

Survivor Series 2012:

Roman Reigns burst on the main roster with Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose in a faction called The Shield.

From then all the way to the June 2nd edition of Raw, The Shield would dominate the WWE by delivering unbelievable moments and cementing themselves as the future pillars of WWE.

June 2nd, 2014, in what would become one of the most iconic moments in WWE history, Seth Rollins turned on the shield.

The 2015 Royal Rumble. By this time, Daniel Bryan still had a stranglehold over the WWE Universe from how popular he was. Roman Reigns would enter at #19, but unfortunately for him, the elimination of Daniel Bryan completely took the fans out of the match.

The Mega Push – Part 2.

Fans now knew Roman was winning, and they just couldn’t accept that. Everything else that was happening in the match, they booed. Even The Rock coming back to help Roman didn’t help the boos. They only got louder.

The Mega Push – Part 3.

From 2015 – 2018, Roman would be given all the fame and accomplishments that came with it, like 4 Wrestlemania main events, world title runs, and even defeating the Undertaker at Wrestlemania, being the second in history to do so.

The Mega Push – Part 4.

Anything Roman did, the fans hated it because in their eyes, he was a “forced” good guy. John Cena covers this well in their promo battle ahead of their singles match at No Mercy 2017.

The Mega Push – Part 5

Roman Reigns would face Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam 2018 for the Universal Title. Roman would win, finally defeating The Beast. After that, Reigns would have a short yet solid title run, but it all ended from something nobody saw coming.

The Setback. On Raw, October 22nd, 2018, Roman would open the show, but he seemed different than his usual self. He announced to the world he’s been living with Leukemia, and he’d have to relinquish the Universal Title. He promised to be back better than ever.

The Return. (2019) February 25th, 2019, Roman would return, announcing he’s back in remission, and the WWE Universe accepted him with open arms.

Wrestlemania 36 was coming fast ahead, and Roman was presented to face Goldberg for the Universal Title, however with the Covid-19 pandemic striking faster than we all expected, Roman would take his leave to protect his health.

The Return. (2020) At Summerslam 2020, Roman Reigns returned delivering a brutal beat down to the late great Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman. The post Smackdown it would be revealed that Roman is now a Paul Heyman guy, and he then would capture the Universal Title at Payback 2020.

The Heel Turn. Finally, after all of these years, Roman Reigns would turn heel, and it did not disappoint.

From then on, Roman would have a change in demeanor, his wrestling style, and even his ring gear by ditching the shield vest. He’d have Jey Uso align with him around November 2020, and they would rule over Smackdown.

Reigns would face the likes of Kevin Owens, Daniel Bryan, and 2021 Royal Rumble winner Edge. At Wrestlemania 37, it would be a Triple Threat for the Universal Title with a dominant pin on both challengers by Roman.

Family Above All. Jimmy Uso would return back from his injury to reunite with Jey Uso AND Roman Reigns, creating The Bloodline.

Come 2022-2023, The Bloodline is stronger than ever, and WWE is the best it’s ever been smashing records left and right, and we owe it all to one man.

Week in and week out the fans have been wondering what’s next when it comes to Roman and The Bloodline. They were thankful and excited that WWE is fun again because of a storyline that provided everything they wanted.

All of Roman’s matches have had a big fight feel, most of it stemming from his schedule becoming lighter. When he defended the belt, it felt like the biggest thing on earth that nobody else could do.

WM 40 – Night 1 At Wrestlemania 40, Roman would team with his cousin The Rock to face Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins, tying the record for most Wrestlemania main events in history with Hulk Hogan. He’d win this match and obtain his 1000th win in WWE.

WM 40 – Night 2 It’s do or die in this match for Cody Rhodes. Can he knock off Roman’s 1,316 day reign? He did. In what was one of the greatest matches in WWE History, Cody Rhodes would finish his story and Roman’s reign as Tribal Chief would come to an end.

Whether you love him or hate him, you can’t deny Roman has shaped this new generation setting expectations we don’t even know can be reached. He’s given us oscar-worthy segments everytime he’s been on TV. Here’s to many more years of The Tribal Chief in WWE. Oh, and one last thing.

ACKNOWLEDGE ME!

Thanks to X user ClownBall9 for the article.