MVP: “A lot of today’s talent are scared to be real heels – They don’t really want to go all in and be a real bad guy”
During his podcast, AEW star MVP discussed the challenges of creating effective heel wrestlers in today’s wrestling landscape. Here is what MVP had to say…
“See, it’s my opinion that nowadays a lot, not all, but a lot of people don’t want to be real heels. They want to be cheered, or they want, ‘Oh, I’m, you know, kind of a tweener.’
Have the courage to be a face or a heel, because being a face isn’t easy. Let’s just admit, socially, it’s way easier to get people to dislike you than it is to get people to like you.
‘Cause you’re going out there and trying to smile and, you know, make friends and shake hands and kiss babies and do your best work so people go, ‘Hey, I like this guy.’ You can come out there and just, ‘everybody in this building can kiss my ass.’
So technically, it’s easier to be a heel. Now, in terms of talent and execution, that’s a different conversation. But to be presented as a babyface and to get over as one is more difficult than to get over as a heel.
As a heel, yes, you want heat. You want to do things that make people dislike you. You don’t want to do things that will make people cheer for you. You want to do things that will make people go, ‘I hate this dude, man.’
I remember Arn Anderson taught me a long time ago. He was teaching me little nuances of being a good heel, and he was showing me where there are certain things you can do as a heel that it’s not against the rules, but everybody just looks and goes, ‘Man, that’s messed up. You ain’t have to do that.’
[William] Regal taught me, and I remember when you hook somebody for a pin and they kick out, I’ll hook the leg again, but this time I put my forearm across their face and put my elbow in their jaw. That’s not against the rules. It’s just kind of messed up.
And then they’ll kick out again and I’ll put my knee on their face to hook their leg, you know. No, I’ve had referees, inexperienced referees, young, who go, ‘Hey, you can’t do that.’ Well, I’m just a pin, man. Such a dumb— get out of here.
There’s just the little things that you can do. And I try to tell—and here’s a message for young talent watching this: Stop turning your back on your opponent to go address the crowd, to gloat. Stop doing that. Don’t do that, because you’re wasting effort.
If you have a babyface that you just knocked to the dirt and he’s on the ground, or, you know, it applies to whatever gender you subscribe to, you stand over them, ’cause why would you walk five feet away to go, ‘Hey, look at me’? The person visually—think about it, television—they’re watching you on television. It’s way more impressive to have this babyface at your feet and you’re standing over them, hitting a pose or just, you know, looking around. You ain’t got to say anything. You just knocked this person down. They’re on the ground selling, and you just stand over them. Just look around.
Something I used to like to do, ‘This your man right here? This your guy right here on the ground at my feet. Your champion. This your champ. This your guy right here. This your man right here.’
You want to get heat. You want to be disliked, and now you’re tough. But as soon as something happens and that babyface catches you with something, bam. ‘Whoa. Let me get out the ring.’ Classic MVP calling timeout.
‘Oh, you’re a coward. Yeah, you’re scared. You suck.’
No, I don’t. I’m exceptionally good at my job. That’s getting heat.
A lot of today’s talent are scared to be real heels. They want to be cheered. They want to be liked. They don’t really want to go all in and be a real bad guy.”