Roman Reigns Is Still A Terrible WWE Babyface (& I’m Tired Of Pretending He’s Not)

At SummerSlam 2024, Roman Reigns returned to WWE programming and became a babyface in an instant, taking out the unpopular new Bloodline leader of Solo Sikoa, and settling into a role where he accepted the fan support. Teaming with the likes of Cody Rhodes, The Usos, CM Punk, and Sami Zayn, those around Reigns gave him a second chance and welcomed him back into the babyface sphere. However, there is a harsh truth that we need to accept, and I will no longer pretend that it isn’t the case – Roman Reigns is not a good babyface, and he may never be.

Roman Reigns Was An Awful Babyface As ‘The Big Dog’

Reigns Was Hated By The WWE Universe

• WWE decided that Roman Reigns was going to be the next John Cena.
• A babyface Reigns ruined WWE programming with his awkward character.
• His promos were weak, and he came across as goofy.

WWE decided that Roman Reigns was to be the next John Cena and franchise player in the company. However, the WWE fans did not agree with this sentiment, and from the course of 2014 to 2020, they rejected him at almost every turn. Roman Reigns’ main events ruined shows, his title reigns lacked interest, and every feud had an awkward atmosphere surrounding it, with fans often cheering for the heels and booing Roman Reigns out of any arena he was in. Of course, some of these failures can firmly be put down to mistakes WWE made with Reigns’ booking and presentation. However, some of the blame can also lie with Reigns.

Roman Reigns failed to connect with the WWE audience for the majority of his babyface run. There was some interest when he first received his singles push, again at the back end of 2015, when he developed more of an edge and aggression to his character (that WWE soon dropped), and also amidst multiple reunions of The Shield. However, Reigns did not have the ability to properly connect with fans. His facial expressions felt forced, he couldn’t get fans onside through in-ring psychology, and his promos were diabolical as a good guy. WWE’s writing was bad, but Reigns’ delivery was too – he was cheesy, goofy, and often unlikable.

The Current Roman Reigns Is A Cheap Tribal Chief Parody

Reigns Is A Shell Of His Heel Persona

• Reigns felt truly special as an unstoppable champion heel.
• It was inevitable that WWE would turn Roman into a babyface again.
• He is now watered down, and his promos don’t land the same.

Roman Reigns’ heel turn saved his WWE career, finally unlocking a character that he could thrive in. The Tribal Chief became one of the most captivating acts on WWE programming, carrying the promotion through the pandemic era and improving the main event scene tenfold over the next few years. Reigns’ unstoppable title reign felt special, he felt like a star, and his performances were world-class. It made fans question why it took WWE so long to turn him heel in the first place. At some point, though, it was inevitable that WWE would use the momentum and star power built from his heel run to pull the trigger on him once again as a good guy, and that happened in 2024.

However, Roman Reigns’ babyface turn hasn’t been all that many had hoped for. Reigns came back with a similar presentation to his Tribal Chief run, but is a little looser, slightly more explosive in the ring, and no longer insults the audience. The positives end there. Reigns no longer has his aura, charm, arrogance, and confidence that he had as a bad guy, and everything he does now just feels like a cheap copy of his best work.

Due to WWE trying to keep him somewhat consistent with The Tribal Chief persona, Reigns fails to feel likable too, as all of his evil antics and nefarious ways over the last few years have gone unanswered and ignored by the man himself, showing little remorse or apology for what he did, meaning that he doesn’t really act like a babyface at all from a storytelling standpoint, despite getting large cheers and wrestling against heels. In truth, this run has exposed the same issues he had last time – he cannot play a likable, charismatic babyface. This is not meant as a slight on Reigns, but some wrestlers are just way better suited to being a heel, and he is one of them.

Due To Being A Part-Timer, Roman Reigns Will Never Be A Good Babyface

The Tribal Chief Needs Prolonged Time On-Screen To Earn Redemption

• Roman Reigns shows up a handful of times each year.
• This is not enough time for him to transition into a babyface character full of depth.
• If this version of Reigns was on-screen all the time, fans would turn on him.

There is no proof right now of Roman Reigns being able to be a good babyface, with him right now riding on the coattails of his heel run. Unfortunately for him, time may be up on being able to turn things around on the babyface front due to him being a part-timer. Reigns appears very infrequently, wrestling fewer than ten matches in the last two years. For someone who has been such a despicable villain, there has still been no real redemption arc, with the likes of The Usos, Sami Zayn and Cody Rhodes simply forgiving him without any form of apology.

Due to Reigns being a part-time wrestler, he is not on TV enough to dig deep into a storyline where his redemption is a focus, and instead has limped along in feuds with Solo Sikoa, Seth Rollins, and CM Punk as a generic character who is, as mentioned, just a weaker version of his heel gimmick. If Roman Reigns was on TV every week under this current iteration, it wouldn’t be long until fans would start booing and turned on him, as there is actually little redeemable about his act, and he is failing to truly showcase a babyface energy – something he has always lacked. WWE had a chance to really drive home the redemption arc and bring out a different side of him in 2024 during The Bloodline shenanigans, but they missed the boat. Reigns may get big reactions, but I am under no illusion that he can play a good role as a babyface.