CJ Perry Says WWE Fans Told Her Newborn Nephew to “Die” During Heel Storyline

Cameron and CJ Perry aren’t holding back about the emotional toll WWE took on them—both in front of the camera and behind the scenes.

Speaking on the Identity Crisis podcast, the former WWE stars opened up about the dark side of their careers, from disturbing fan harassment to the harsh culture shock of wrestling’s backstage rules. For Cameron, the criticism wasn’t about her wrestling—it turned personal, with people crossing the line in horrifying ways.

“And it was like some crazy stuff. I don’t know if I can even say this. I don’t know, you guys maybe like exit it out. But the stuff that was like so harmful, I’m like damn, what day and age are we living in? Because they would be like, ‘I hope you get cancer.’ And I’m like, ‘Why do I have… I have cancer? And why do I gotta be a b****?’ Like what the… like can we just talk about—well, talk about my skills, talk about how you don’t like me, but why do we have to like… yeah. Like damn.”*

CJ Perry recalled the hateful messages she received while portraying the Russian villain character in WWE—especially when she dedicated matches to Vladimir Putin as part of the storyline. According to Perry, things got so toxic that fans started sending death wishes to her infant nephew.

“I mean, it’s crazy. When I think about when I was doing the Russian thing with dedicating our matches to Vladimir Putin. Crush. People did not like me, you know, at all. They really thought I was Russian, and I would post my little nephew — and he was like little, three weeks old, cute — and people would be like, ‘Die. We hope your child dies. We hope your ugly nephew dies.’ And it’s like, wait, this is an innocent child. Like stop. Why would you do that? People really show their true colors, unfortunately, online, and we’re gonna all ask you to try to be a little bit more nicer.”

But the emotional toll didn’t stop there. Cameron spoke about the unwritten rules she didn’t know coming into WWE—like having to shake every single person’s hand backstage. Not doing so earned her heat, even though she was simply unaware.

“Even back — let’s throw it back at FCW — when I first got there and people were like, ‘She was the first eliminated, how is she here?’ And not knowing, like the culture of wrestling, you shake people’s hands. I didn’t know that. I’m just saying like, ‘Oh, hey, how are you?’”

CJ Perry jumped in to explain how strict that etiquette was during their time in WWE.

“There’s this etiquette that you have to go around and shake everyone’s hands. Like literally shake their hands. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Like every single person. Everyone. No fist bumps, no… no heat. That is just, it’s considered disrespectful. Yeah. And even just doing this is disrespectful. Yes, yes, yes. I got a ton of heat in NXT for not shaking everyone’s hands.”

Cameron emphasized that the misunderstanding wasn’t out of disrespect—it was just unfamiliar.

“It’s not like I was ever being rude. It’s not. It’s not like you’re just like, ‘Hi, how are you?’ Yeah. Like most people just kinda like wave. You don’t… I’ve never really gone to every single person, especially when you’re meeting so many people at one time, where you’re shaking every single person’s hand, because it just would seem like uncomfortable. It is. Like if someone’s in your face, yeah, you would shake their hand, but not go to every single person. Yeah. And shake every single person’s hand. And that is called disrespect if you don’t do it.”

The emotional weight of toxic online fans paired with a strict backstage culture made their WWE runs far more challenging than most would assume. It’s a reminder that behind every wrestling persona is a real person navigating a harsh spotlight.

Do you believe fans should be held accountable for extreme online harassment? And should pro wrestling better teach newcomers its backstage etiquette? Sound off in the comments.

Please credit Ringside News if you use the above transcript in your publication.