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Chris Van Vliet recently interviewed former WWE Superstar Erick Rowan. During the interview, Rowan, who now goes by Erick Redbeard, opened up about his release. Rowan spoke about a conversation he had with Paul Heyman just before his departure.
Rowan was released by WWE earlier this year, along with a host of other Superstars and staff as part of the company's cost-cutting measure in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.
At the time of his release, Rowan had returned to television with the cage gimmick, which ended up being pretty disappointing.
What Paul Heyman told Erick Rowan before his release
While speaking to Chris Van Vliet, Rowan revealed that he didn't see his release from WWE coming. He said that he talked to Paul Heyman shortly before his release and was assured that his position in the company was not in any danger:
I went to Heyman and I said ‘Am I OK? I couldn’t make this work, and I feel bad I couldn’t make it work.’ Because I’m proud of what I do in the ring and at work. It is an art. You’re given whatever on a piece of paper and you have to make it work to the best of your ability as a performer. It’s no different than in acting. You act out a scene – it could be the crappiest script you’ve ever read in your life but you try to make it work to the best of your ability because it’s your job. Directly to me face he says ‘Don’t worry we’re killing the cage, better things are coming, you are in good standing with the company.’ Now that I look back I was like was he chastising me, did he know something I didn’t know? But why tell me something like that? H/T: 411Mania
However, as we know, Erick Rowan was released despite the reassurances from Paul Heyman. Rowan's story is similar to what AJ Styles said regarding the release of Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson from WWE.
According to Styles, Paul Heyman had told him that he wasn't happy that Gallows and Anderson were getting released. However, when AJ Styles spoke to Vince McMahon later, Vince told him that it was Paul Heyman who had put Gallows and Anderson on the list.
