'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Roman Reigns is the biggest superstar in WWE today, at least among the full-time superstars. No superstar in WWE has received as big a push in the last six years, and Reigns' five WrestleMania main events in six years prove exactly that.
Outside the ring, Roman Reigns has made a few controversial comments. Interestingly, not all of these were made after he turned heel. He was often considered one of the most hated WWE superstars during his push as a top babyface. On such occasions, making controversial comments didn't help him.
Here are five controversial comments made by Roman Reigns:
#5. Roman Reigns takes a big dig at CM Punk ahead of his AEW debut
CM Punk's AEW debut seemed to overshadow virtually everything else that happened in pro wrestling over the SummerSlam 2021 weekend. It was well-known that Punk was going to debut, although it was never fully confirmed.
Looking back at CM Punk's debut at AEW Rampage, it's interesting to analyze Roman Reigns' comments before it happened. Reigns was interviewed by BT Sport's Ariel Helwani, where he was asked about CM Punk's past comments about him. He was also asked if he was okay with part-timers like John Cena coming in and receiving a title shot.
In response, Roman Reigns took a shot at CM Punk and said that he doesn't move the needle the way John Cena or The Rock can:
"Those statements are coming from bitter people, you know, who possibly thought they were better than they really were," said Reigns. "When it comes down to it, CM Punk was not as good or as over as a John Cena. [He] wasn't as good or as over and moved the needle like The Rock. It just wasn't what it was."
This sparked a bit of controversy in the wrestling world. It didn't help that CM Punk praised Roman Reigns as the best part of WWE just a couple of months before:
“I think a lot of times the best stuff, you’ve also kind of just gotta go with the flow with it,” Punk said during an appearance on the Wrestling Perspective Podcast. “I’ll use Roman Reigns as an example, because if we’re talking about good stuff, if the WWE does anything good, I mean, this is the one thing that they’re doing right right now, right? Is Roman Reigns."
Ultimately, it seems to be a topic of debate. Many argue that despite the controversial nature of Roman Reigns' comments, there is truth to them. It is a fact that CM Punk isn't a mainstream star in quite the way The Rock and John Cena are.
Roman Reigns went on to take a dig at CM Punk's AEW debut, referring to SummerSlam's viewership success:
Looking at it objectively, it's possible that Roman Reigns was simply being a heel, knowing full well that he would get heat for his comments.
#4. Roman Reigns' Royal Rumble comment
A month before Roman Reigns returned to WWE for his heel run as The Tribal Chief, he made a comment about the Royal Rumble that wasn't well-received by fans.
Responding to a tweet about the 2017 Royal Rumble, Roman Reigns called himself the most important Royal Rumble competitor of all time. He has only won the Royal Rumble once, in 2015.
Roman Reigns has been the runner-up almost every year he's competed in it. In 2014, Reigns was the runner-up before Batista won. In 2016, he was the second-last competitor thrown out, with Dean Ambrose being the runner-up that year to winner Triple H.
In 2017, Roman Reigns was the runner-up as Randy Orton threw him out to win the Royal Rumble. In 2018, he was in the same runner-up spot, but to Shinsuke Nakamura. Reigns didn't compete at the 2019 Royal Rumble pay-per-view.
In 2020, Roman Reigns was once again the runner-up to winner Drew McIntyre. What's clear from this is WWE's pattern of using Reigns to get the eventual winner cheered. His 2017 Royal Rumble entry from #30 in particular was highly controversial and WWE knew this. However, fans still didn't respond well to the idea that he is the most important Royal Rumble competitor of all time.
#3. Roman Reigns takes a dig at a fan's (non) belief
While this is admittedly less controversial, the timing of it didn't help Roman Reigns. Some would argue that this was a clever comeback from him, while others would say that it was a bit insensitive.
Reigns wasn't a popular character in 2017 and that may have had a lot to do with vocal portions of the WWE Universe jumping on any reason to criticise him. Responding to a supposed atheist on Twitter, Reigns called them a "faithless fool". The nature of the response was seemingly a slippery slope to ride on.
Fortunately for Reigns, this was quickly forgotten about.
#2. Roman Reigns' "WWE is a kids product" comment
It's important to note the context when Roman Reigns made this comment. He was still at the height of unpopularity. At this point, he had won the Elimination Chamber to qualify for the WrestleMania main event where he faced Brock Lesnar for the Universal title.
Fans were angry because it was Braun Strowman who they felt was deserving of the spot. Strowman was, at the time, an organic babyface who was legitimately loved.
Speaking to the Orlando Sentinel a month before WrestleMania 34 in 2018, Roman Reigns said that the fans booing him were mostly adults who he wasn't in the business for:
“Typically if you hear the boos, it generally is grown men my age and I’m not really in this business for the grown men. (laughs) I’m in this business for the families. That’s what we are; we’re a PG product. We’re a family-based product. We’re here to entertain families and give them enjoyment. If you’re a 30-year-old man and you want to flip me off at a kids show, then, hey, like I said, you paid your money but just be careful because you could get kicked out.”
This was, understandably, not well received by said adults of his age. It isn't that controversial a statement when looking back at it, but it drew the ire of fans at the time regardless.
#1. Roman Reigns fires back at his haters in early 2015
Early 2015 was when Roman Reigns realized the harsh reality of how fans felt about his push. He appeared on Sam Roberts' Wrestling Podcast and was asked about his thoughts on the critics and haters. In a bit of a passionate response, Roman Reigns said:
"To be honest I really don't care. I can only do my thing and do the best that I can. The majority of critics, I would say, are people who have no clue what they're talking about and have never been in a wrestling ring. They've never been a public speaker. They wouldn't even know how to lock up with me if I allowed them to. If I gave them the opportunity to lock up and tangle with me in the ring, they would have no clue what to do so for them to critique or ever say anything about any performer is asinine and just blows my mind." (H/T Inquistr)
It should be noted that this was well over 6-and-a-half years ago. Roman Reigns has matured a lot as a performer and a human being. We can understand why this was controversial since the already polarizing star decided to isolate the fanbase by insulting them.
It didn't help his case, but we can still understand his point of view. Roman Reigns today has the crowds eating out of the palm of his hand and has come a long way as a performer.
