Kayla Braxton Reflects On WWE Allowing Talent To Break Character, How That Changed

WWE has become a bit more of a relaxed product in terms of talent sometimes breaking character, something Kayla Braxton recently reflected on. Sami Zayn is famous for getting the Bloodline to break character during in-ring promos, perhaps most infamously his “Ucey” line on the October 28th, 2022 episode of WWE Smackdown.

Zayn isn’t the only one who has broken people on TV though in recent years, with R-Truth managing to do it more than once. Braxton weighed in on the change during an appearance on TMZ Inside the Ring. She noted that it used to be a hard rule not to do so, suggesting that she thinks it’s part of WWE opening up the curtain a bit. You can see highlights below:

On Sami Zayn Breaking People Up In Segments:

“Sami Zayn, I will always say — he is one of he was probably one of the funniest people backstage. Unintentionally funny. He just had this thing and like, talk about a professional. He would go above and beyond to make sure these segments look really good.

“But yeah, off camera watching all of those guys kind of feed off of each other was — I mean, I wish there was a show like a whole show just with a camera following them around. I don’t think I could have gotten paired with a better group of people to learn from, and just to be entertained from. Even if I didn’t have anything on air that week, just sitting back and just watching them work was so much fun.”

On WWE Letting Such Moments Happen:

“I mean, truly — to be honest, I think all that started happening on my way out, where they’re allowing the curtain to be pulled back a little bit more. I think maybe that was it. I think Triple H and the powers that be probably saw, ‘Oh, we’re getting a lot of good reaction from these fans who have been a part of us for so many years. They’re feeling like they get to kind of peek in now.’

“And it’s really good for the fans, it’s really good for the fan base. It’s how the WWE has kind of like gotten into more homes and more eyeballs. I mean that’s kind of what I think. And I think lately we’ve been seeing a lot more views inside of what’s happening backstage.”

On How That’s Changed:

“Back then we kept things very tight, closed. ‘No, you can’t know anything’s happening. No breaking character.’ I remember even me, if I like — there were sometimes 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, ‘You cannot break. Do not smirk, do not blink, do not breathe.’

“And then it got to a point — I think after The Bump and people started seeing that I have a personality and a rapport with these people, they allowed it. So like, sometimes you will see a little smirk or it’s hard to keep down the laugh. Because how do you not laugh at some of these people? How do you not laugh at Paul Heyman screaming and spitting in your face?”

On the Difficulty In Not Breaking Character:

“In NXT that was a big thing where they’re like — when I was working for NXT, they were like, ‘You cannot, you cannot break (character)’. I’m like, ‘You should not have said that. Now all I’m gonna be thinking about is laughing.’”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit TMZ Inside The Ring with a h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.