Kayla Braxton had to keep a straight face through some absolute madness during her WWE run, and apparently that was not just a suggestion.
During her appearance on TMZ Sports’ Inside The Ring, Braxton talked about her time doing backstage interviews in WWE, including those wild Bloodline segments where everyone was trying not to crack. Fans saw plenty of moments where Roman Reigns, Sami Zayn, The Usos and others would nearly break character, but Braxton said that was not always something WWE wanted happening on camera. Braxton explained that when she first arrived in WWE, the rule was simple: protect the show and do not break.
“No. Because back then, we kept things very tight closed. No, you can’t know what anything is happening. No breaking character, right? I mean, like, even me, if I. Like, there were some times it was very hard for me to keep my composure when I was interviewing some of these guys. And when I was new, I remember being told, like, you cannot break. Do not smirk. Do not blink. Do not breathe.”
That is a brutal assignment when someone like Paul Heyman is screaming in your face or Sami Zayn is being unintentionally hilarious two feet away from you. Braxton said things eventually loosened up after fans started seeing more of her real personality through The Bump. Once WWE realized she had natural chemistry with talent, they gave her more room to actually react instead of standing there like a statue.
“And then it got to a point, I think, after The Bump, and people started seeing that I have a personality and, like, a rapport with these people. They allowed it. So, like, sometimes you will see, like, a little smirk or like a tar. To keep down the laugh. Because how do you not laugh at some of these people? How do you not laugh at Paul Heyman? He’s screaming and spitting in your face.”
Braxton also brought up her time in NXT, where being told not to laugh only made the whole thing harder.
“It is. I remember NXT. That was a big thing where they were, like, when I was working for NXT, they were like, you cannot. You cannot break. I’m like, you should not have said that. All I would be thinking about is laughing.”
Braxton’s comments show just how much WWE’s backstage presentation has changed over the years. What used to be locked down and serious has opened up a lot more, especially with fans loving those real moments where talent accidentally lets the mask slip.
At the end of the day, Braxton was stuck doing one of the hardest jobs in WWE: standing next to some of the funniest and loudest people in wrestling while being told not to react at all.
Do you think WWE is better now that talent can show more personality on camera, or should they keep kayfabe tighter? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
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