Sidney Akeem, better known to WWE fans as Reggie, says his move from the main roster back to NXT was not much of a conversation.
While speaking with Duke Hanson on Between Two Jobs, Akeem opened up about the period when WWE shifted from Vince McMahon’s creative direction to Triple H’s leadership. That change also marked the end of his main roster run and his return to NXT.
“Whenever that switch happened between Vince and Triple H, that’s when I came back to NXT.”
Before the move happened, Akeem tried to pitch a new direction for himself. He knew the 24/7 Championship material was dying off, so he approached a WWE executive with an idea that involved wearing a mask and potentially working with Rey Mysterio. Akeem said the executive looked at him during the pitch, but he walked away feeling like none of it had actually registered.
“It wasn’t a conversation. I tried to have a conversation with someone. I was trying to rewrite myself because we knew the 24/7 stuff was going down the drain.”
“I said, ‘I have this idea for a character with a mask. Rey Mysterio is on board, and it would be super cool.’ He said, ‘All right.’ He was looking at me while I was talking, but he wasn’t listening. I left the room thinking, ‘That was a waste. That didn’t get anything or go anywhere.’”
Not long after that meeting, WWE referee and executive John Cone contacted Akeem with a very different plan. Instead of receiving approval for the masked character, Akeem was told WWE was considering sending him back to NXT. His answer was simple because, in his mind, refusing was never a real option.
“Then I got a message from John Cone saying, ‘Hey, Reg, we’re thinking about sending you back to NXT. How do you feel about that?’ I said, ‘Cool.’ That was it. I wasn’t going to say, ‘Nah.’ I would have gotten fired.”
Akeem eventually returned to NXT and was repackaged as Scrypts, using a mask and incorporating his acrobatic background into the character. The idea was not exactly the main roster reinvention he originally pitched, but it gave him another chance to stay on WWE television.
Reggie’s story shows how quickly plans can change in WWE, especially when a performer is trying to save a character that creative has already moved past. He had an idea ready, but the company had already decided where he was going next.
Do you think WWE should have given Reggie’s masked main roster character a real chance, or was sending him back to NXT the right move? Leave your feedback in the comments.
