Unlikely Netflix series hailed ‘greatest reality show in history of television’

WWE legend Paul Heyman has insisted SmackDown should be acknowledged as the ‘greatest reality show’ in television history.

For the last four and a half year the longrunning weekly programme, which now streams after Friday night on Netflix, has focused on the saga of Roman Reigns and The Bloodline with the lines blurred as the real life family took centre stage.

Heyman, who takes centre stage as cover start and the voice of this year’s Showcase mode in WWE 2K25, exclusively told Metro how Roman’s storyline shift in 2020 turned SmackDown into something more comparable to reality TV.

‘When Roman went home during the pandemic, and in his mind he was finished, he was retiring, and came back for the opportunity to be the Tribal Chief,’ he explained.

‘The one word, besides relevance, that kept resonating with us was authenticity,’ he added.

‘If we could present an authentic version of the tribal chief Roman Reigns, if SmackDown could become the greatest reality show in the history of television by following the rise to power of this conflicted Tribal Chief…

Paul Heyman thinks Roman Reigns transformed SmackDown into a reality TV show (Picture: WWE)

The two stars are on the cover of WWE 2K25 (Picture: 2K)

‘This Head of the Table that will do anything it takes to protect the family, even if he has to go outside the bounds of the codes of honor that the family represents.

‘That was a fascinating offering to Roman Reigns and to your Wiseman, and we wanted to jump all over that opportunity.’

Although professional wrestling is choreographed with storylines playing out, it blurs the lines in the ways most scripted shows don’t, with most performers playing an extension of their real selves.

The Bloodline saga blurs the lines between reality and fiction (Picture: WWE/Getty Images)

The family drama will continue in WWE 2K25 (Picture: 2K)

Heyman described Reigns’ character shift was a ‘necessary move’ that paid off in spades, with The Bloodline Saga dominating WWE television for almost half a decade.

‘It was a necessary move, because where else could Roman Reigns have gone? He multi time champion, a multi time WrestleMania main eventer, a multi time main eventer all over the world on every live event and premium live event,’ Heyman pointed out.

‘What had he not accomplished? The problem was it was never the authentic presentation of Roman Reigns.

‘It was conflicting visions that were thrown together that were presented to him to try to make the best soup that he could from the multitude of ingredients that were being put into the character, instead of finding the character within and project it to the masses.’

The Hall of Famer pointed out how Roman’s character changed the trajectory of the business (Picture: WWE)

The Bloodline is rooted in reality (Picture: 2K)

Despite his usual bravado, the ECW pioneer noted being such a key part of WWE 2K25 keeps him ‘reinvigorated’ and ‘inspired’.

‘There is nothing that is more demonstrative of the youth culture than video games, music and sneakers. If you pay attention to those three things, you will understand the pop culture of today,’ he said.

‘So when a fat old, 59-year-old Jew boy from the Bronx is hosting the commercial for the video game, let alone is your personal liaison within the game itself, between the gamer and the WWE multiverse that is embedded into the game – it keeps me young.’

He feels ‘blessed’ to have been working so closely with Reigns himself, as well as getting the chance to contribute to a project like this that his own children can help with.

Heyman pointed out that Reigns and The Bloodline are ‘worthy’ of the focus on them in this year’s game, particularly after the run WWE as a whole has been on the last few years.

‘My compliments to the executives at 2K, and my humble appreciation to their shareholders for demonstrating the fact that Roman Reigns and his Wiseman are worthy of the acknowledgement of being on the cover of this video game,’ he smiled.

Heyman is honoured to be part of something so special (Picture: WWE)

‘What a historic moment for this to happen, right in the middle of what is unquestionably the hottest run, the hottest box office run in the history of professional wrestling slash sports entertainment slash WWE.

‘And for me personally, for the first time to have a corner man, Wiseman, special counsel – I hate the term manager, but I’ll use it here – on the cover.

‘It is an extraordinary breakthrough that with all false humility aside, I feel the Tribal Chief and his Wiseman richly deserve.’

WWE 2K25 will be released on March 14, with the deluxe editions launching a week earlier on March 7. WWE returns to London’s O2 Arena for SmackDown (March 28) and Raw (March 31). Individual event tickets pre-sale starts at 10am on January 30, with general sale the following day.

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