By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
Insight With Chris Van Vliet with guest Zelina Vega
Host: Chris Van Vliet
Podcast available via Podcasts.Apple.com
On winning the Women’s U.S. Championship: “Well, the day of, when it actually happened, I think I was just so in work mode that I wasn’t able to grasp what was happening. Then the second I grabbed my face, when I was walking up the ramp with it, that’s when it kind of hit me, and I was like, oh shit, this is real right now, like work stuff and things. And then it was like, oh shit, this is my first singles title, what the hell? It just so happened to be the same time that the commentators putting that over, so yeah, I think that’s when it hit me, and I was kind of blown away by it. I wasn’t expecting to get emotional, because I hate crying. I hate it. As much as you’re like, Oh, she’s gonna cry again. I hate crying. When it was coming out, it’s like you kind of fight it a bit, but that moment and Backlash were the two that I just let it go.”
On winning Queen of the Ring: “That’s where the weird Australian, British kind of accent started. So yeah, because Vince asked me, ‘Can you do an accent?’ I was like, ‘I could do a really bad one.’ And he’s like, ‘That’s even better. Do that!’ I’m like, All right, cool. So yeah, that’s how it started. I did talk to Booker T right before I won it, and I was like, ‘Hey, are you cool with me doing an accent if I end up doing this?’ And he was like, ‘Yeah, for sure.’ I was talking to him and Sharmell, he’s like, ‘Make sure you make it yours. But whatever feels natural to you, just amplify that.’ So it was cool to get to talk to them right before it happened, because for me, he’s my favorite. King Booker was my favorite.”
On being cast as AJ Lee in “Fighting With My Family”: “So he [The Rock] knew for a while that I wanted to do acting, because I was doing acting before I started wrestling, because I thought that’s what you had to do. I loved any kind of backstage or vignettes or in-ring promos. I loved that, and he was like the godfather of it. So he knew that I wanted to do acting also. I remember one time he was like, ‘You sure you want to do wrestling? Because I just feel like acting is right there for you. You have the look, I’ve seen what you can do…’ I showed him reels and stuff. So he’s like, ‘You sure?’ And I’m like, ‘100% sure wrestling first and foremost, but I’d love to do acting at some point too.’ He was like, Okay. And then, eventually, he’s like, ‘I have the perfect blending of the worlds for you right now.’ I was like, okay, and mind you, so this came after I had already said I don’t want to do anything entertainment business anymore. I’m f—ing over it, blah, blah, blah. He’s like, ‘Give me a few days.’ So he calls me, and he’s like, ‘Yeah, I got this thing…’
“The funny thing is, I don’t remember exactly how the conversation went, because I remember a sinking feeling the more he talks. I was like, Oh my God, I feel like something big is coming, and I don’t know what it is yet. Then he’s like, ‘So we’re doing this movie. It’s a documentary that they had on Paige’s life and her family. Basically, we’re doing the movie, but we’re continuing it, and kind of replaying this whole thing out with Paige and AJ Lee and how she won the championship and whatever, because I was the one who told her about it that day, and I need you to be my Divas Champion.’ And I was like, ‘What?!’ He’s like, ‘This is usually where people are like, super happy and say, “Thank you so much.”‘ I’m like, ‘Wait, wait, I didn’t even hear what you’re saying correctly. Can you repeat what you just said? Because it sounds like you offered me a role just now, but I’m not 100% that’s what you said.’ And he’s like, ‘Yes. You know you don’t even have to audition for it. I already know that you can do it, you’re gonna be my Divas Champion.’ I was like, holy shit. So yeah. And then I remember just studying AJ’s voice to exhaustion.”
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