Sami Zayn’s WWE Contract Status Confirmed, Discusses His New Character

In a recent interview with TVA Sports, Sami Zayn discussed a variety of topics including his contract status with WWE. It was also revealed that he signed a new three-year contract with WWE shortly before he had his surgery last year, so he has another two and a half years left on his deal.

Highlights from the interview are below.

On still not being fully healed following his injuries: “It’s been a long nine months with many ups and downs. Recently my shoulders have had a lot of inflammation and I feel my shoulders and arms heavier than usual. Even after nine months, I’m not exactly where I would like to be. But just before these recent episodes of inflammation, I felt in the best shape I had been in a long time.”

On what inspired his new character: “It was a little inspired by my sick leave. I realized that I had a lot of bad habits and the break allowed me to see and correct them. I had some ideas and one of them went a step further in the process, but was not accepted. So I did not know what to do and Robert Evans (former WWE writer who was released recently), who is a good friend, suggested me to become a kind of criticism of the most passionate fans. Then, we decided to add that the bad habits that I had developed over the years, I would blame the amateurs for that, that I would direct my anger to have developed these habits towards the fans.”

On when he found out he’d be returning on the RAW after WrestleMania: “At one point, in a very optimistic scenario, I had to come back for the Royal Rumble, but that was not the case. I knew the week before the event that I was coming back to Raw after WrestleMania. We had been told that I was coming back to Mania, but we did not know when I would have the doctors ok, that I had just a week before WrestleMania finally. There was also a possibility that I would come back to Raw in Montreal, but two or three days before Mania, that’s when I knew I was coming back the following Monday. And even there, I did not know that I was fighting. At first it was a promo, then a backstage segment, then finally a match, so it happens that plans change!”

On if he’s been given the freedom to write his own promos: “I wrote this [most recent] promo. I had a model of the promo that I wanted. I sat down with an agent and dictated my promo. He wrote it and passed the validation process. I do not know if I am one of those who has this privilege. But that night, I had the chance to say what I personally wrote. Sometimes you say things you do not necessarily want to say in a promo. And sometimes it’s more like what you had in mind.”

On the goals for his new character: “My goal with the character, and keep in mind that it does not mean that this is how it’s going to unfold, is to have a character who sees more clearly because he has had time at his disposal. Outside the bubble that is the WWE, who realizes that his work environment is toxic and who decides to blame the crowd. I do not want to say, for example, that the Canadian team did not make the playoffs to make them boo, that’s not the way I want to interact with the crowd. I want to find a different, new, more creative and intelligent way than we usually see. It does not matter which city I will be. I want to speak a different language. Because people have seen a heel that blames fans for his problems a million times, but there are also a million ways to do it. So even if basically the character seems simple, or even if it’s a type of character that we have seen many times, the execution may be different and the way to deliver it may be different too. I’d like to find a more sophisticated way to make that character. ”

On where he wants to go in the Superstar Shake-Up: “Both are cool in different ways. If I need to have a little more time at the microphone to establish my character, Raw and its three hours is better suited for that. On the other side, SmackDown will soon be on Fox, which is not a cable TV channel, which can reach more people, so that too is a benefit. So I do not really have a preference. Both bring something.”