“That’s the Tribal Chief.”- Paul Heyman Explains the True Mystique of Roman Reigns’ “Layered” and “Compelling” Character

WWE has enjoyed extended reverence through Roman Reigns‘ Island of Relevancy today. However, which personality of Reigns built that brick by brick? Certainly not the “Big Dog” who would have been a mere soldier of the sacred land. So, that leaves us with agreeing to the fact that Roman’s island exists because of his transition into the “Tribal Chief” gimmick.

He has ruled the landscape with his ruthless and dominating personality since then. Now, Roman Reigns’ special counsel Paul Heyman has dissected the mystique of the character piece by piece.

How did Paul Heyman describe the true meaning of “The Tribal Chief” character?

Roman Reigns donned the Tribal Chief persona back in 2020 after WWE struggled to get him over as a babyface for years. That turned out to be the best decision of Reigns’ career, as it brought him a level of success no one witnessed in the modern era. Moreover, the fans got to witness different iterations of his charming personality on multiple occasions.

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Paul Heyman recently brought it to light, which was already in front of the public eye. But obviously, no one quite has the vision of professional wrestling characters quite like Mr. Heyman. He elaborated on the layers embodied in the Tribal Chief character, calling it a compelling character with no shades of black or white. Heyman spoke about the same on the Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin podcast.

Paul said: “This was a layered character that …  you love to hate or hate to love and you feel all these different emotions about … Walter White in Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul … Mike in both shows … these are compelling characters that are not black and white.”

Heyman clearly indicated that Roman’s personality was not restricted to any boundaries, and that’s what made it so great. He also disclosed the one trait that propels Reigns’ persona.

Paul Heyman opens up about the real power behind Roman Reigns’ character

Roman Reigns has done wonders for his career with his Tribal Chief character. How was he able to do it? The character’s layered and compelling nature helped him garner different reactions, explore new directions, and not be limited by the label of being a pure heel.

“These are not 1980s Hulkamania enemies … these are sophisticated contemporary characters that I can buy into … that I either love to hate or hate to love and sometimes … both within the same 5 seconds … that I am willing to pay to see the next chapter of … these are situated as a villain, but not limited by the label … and that’s the Tribal Chief … and he is able to play and pull it off and find new dimensions and layers and new emotions even.”

The Head of the Table managed to harness the power of his new persona. Clearly, that made him the biggest attraction of the modern era and helped him surpass 1000 days as the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion.

Do you agree with Paul Heyman’s dissection of the mystique of the Tribal Chief?

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