WWE fans have long called for a Roman Reigns heel turn, with many saying that's the only way to save his character.
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
But is it really? Given that Reigns continues to have a massive fan base and sell merchandise at an impressive rate, WWE remains hesitant to move Reigns to the dark side and understandably so, even if some fans have gone so far as to start online petitions begging for Reigns to turn. A number of well-respected names within the pro industry, however, including The Miz and Reigns himself, have pointed out why a Reigns heel turn isn't exactly a necessity. Although it would surely improve Reigns' standing in the eyes of many diehard fans if he were to turn heel, there are just as many, if not more, fans who believe it would hurt his character and his merchandise sales, which is something the Wrestling Observer Newsletter's Dave Meltzer noted happened to the very popular CM Punk when he turned heel several years ago.
WWE, though, is currently taking a bizarre approach to Reigns' babyface push, essentially portraying Reigns more like a heel in hopes that fans who boo him will start to cheer for him instead. That's quite the radical idea that could backfire on WWE because it's easy to see right through that desperate attempt to make Reigns appeal to hardcore fans, which will ultimately just result in more boo birds in the long run. That's why WWE may need to dig deep into its bag of tricks and find another odd way to end the boos for Reigns without officially turning him heel.
Here are five unique things WWE can do to avoid turning Reigns heel while simultaneously ensuring that he becomes more popular.
Take Him Off TV For An Extended Period
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
MORE FROM FORBES
Absence truly does make the heart grow fonder, especially in pro wrestling.
Whenever a superstar, especially a major one, returns from a lengthy layoff, it's not out of the ordinary for fans who once despised that star to, quite frankly, go bonkers whenever that star comes back. If you want to know why Rey Mysterio's Royal Rumble return was such a huge viewership hit, why the data indicated that fans loved Goldberg or why fans absolutely lost it when Seth Rollins showed up at Extreme Rules 2016, it's mainly because those stars were gone for an extended period and fans couldn't wait for them to come back.
Other than a 30-day Wellness policy suspension in 2016 and a short absence due to illness last fall, however, Reigns really hasn't been gone for an extended period since his rise to the top of the card began in 2014. While that is a testament to Reigns' durability as a top star, it's been a catch-22 of sorts because the fact that Reigns has been around so consistently for the last five years means that fans haven't had much of a break from him during that span.
Inevitably, a superstar is going to get stale, and fans are going to get sick of that superstar if he's around for such a lengthy period (without a break lasting more than a month), especially when that star is still mentioned or shown on TV during his absence. What Reigns really needs is to be out of sight and out of mind for a prolonged break that lasts six months or more and potentially makes fans grow to appreciate him more when he is around.
Of course, no one wishes a serious injury upon Reigns, but a predetermined hiatus that leaves Reigns off TV altogether (we're talking no mentions of him whatsoever) for several months or more could result in him being more popular as a babyface upon his return as it's done for countless other superstars. WWE would likely be unwilling to purposefully sideline arguably its top star for such an extended span, but a bold move like that could benefit the company more in the long run.
Move Him To SmackDown
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
Raw is clearly considered to be WWE's "A-show" while SmackDown is the "B-show," so in that sense, Reigns has been positioned as the No. 1 star on the company's No. 1 brand for nearly five years now.
That harsh truth might be more palatable for fans if WWE changed things up a bit by moving Reigns to SmackDown, which based on viewership alone, is clearly not WWE's flagship program. SmackDown is indeed No. 2 on the WWE pecking order, and fans would likely be a lot more accepting of Reigns if he was traded to the blue brand, which would allow other stars to rise up the ranks of Raw and change up the monotony of Reigns consistently hogging the red brand's spotlight.
With WWE recently referring to SmackDown as its "flagship program" due to its upcoming move to FOX, however, there is speculation that WWE will indeed push SmackDown as the new No. 1 show because it will be on a bigger network than Raw will. That could cause a problem if some fans perceive Reigns moving to SmackDown as definitive proof that the blue brand has become WWE's top priority, but on the same note, it would undoubtedly represent a welcome change from the five-year reign of Reigns as the face of Raw.
After all, Raw has always been presented as superior to SmackDown since the latter began in 1999, and there's plenty of doubt that this will change anytime soon. If that is indeed the case and things remain as they always have for the last two decades, then it would be a lot easier for fans to digest watching Reigns on SmackDown, knowing that this will present a number of other capable stars with the opportunity to be the face of what has historically been WWE's most important brand, Raw.
Have Him Put Over Stars The Way John Cena Has
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
If anyone knows how Reigns feels, it's John Cena, who has spent the past dozen years or so being booed in much the same way Reigns has.
The biggest difference between the two, other than Cena clearly being a much bigger individual draw, is that Cena has reached the point where he's more widely respected than Reigns, at least in part because he's been incredibly unselfish when it comes to the booking of his character over the last few years. Given that he's spent well over a decade as the face of WWE, Cena certainly could throw a fit if he didn't agree with a match result or an entire storyline for the matter, but Cena has been very altruistic in that regard as his career begins to wind down.
With Cena's time in WWE coming to a close as his Hollywood career takes off, Cena has put over a number of stars just during the last year or two, including the likes of Shinsuke Nakamura (100% clean, mind you), Seth Rollins (who pinned him clean, too), Reigns (also 100% clean) and The Undertaker (again, 100% clean), all while working with other rising stars ranging from Finn Balor to Braun Strowman. Aside from him not being around nearly as often as he once was, one of the main reasons why fans have grown to appreciate Cena more is that he's been selfless at the end of his career in way that has helped stars like Rollins, Nakamura and, ironically enough, Reigns.
Although Reigns has lost his fair share of matches over the years, he's very rarely been pinned cleanly by a star at the same position or lower than him on the card without ultimately getting that win back (See: Bobby Lashley). The difference in the way Reigns and Cena are pushed was perfectly exemplified by Rollins pinning Reigns via a surprise roll-up in that epic gauntlet match on Raw back in February and then Rollins pinning Cena via The Stomp that same night. Of course, there is a stark contrast between losing in fluke fashion via roll-up and being soundly defeated by a finishing move, and Reigns did the former while Cena did the latter.
That is really a microcosm of why fans are more accepting of Cena these days and less accepting of Reigns, and if the "The Big Dog" were booked more like "The Champ" has been since the beginning of 2017, perhaps more fans would start to appreciate him the way they have with Cena.
Reunite The Shield
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com