Rhea Ripley is having a blast with her current run, and she says her character progression echoes her growth in real life.
Ripley joined forces with Edge and Damian Priest to form the initial trio of The Judgment Day in May, and Finn Balor followed suit in June. The stable recruited Dominik Mysterio for a number of weeks, and he finally turned by betraying his father, Rey Mysterio, at WWE Clash at the Castle. Since then, Ripley has risen to the forefront as a dominant player on WWE Raw, and her villainous persona stands in stark contrast to the babyface she once was on NXT.
Speaking with SPORTbible Australia, Ripley discussed the progression of her character. She described how she assumed she would be an upbeat babyface when she was starting out. "The Nightmare" noted that she never planned on taking this direction, but it has come alongside her growth as a person.
"I thought that I was just going to fit in with everyone and be this real upbeat babyface, but that’s because that’s what I was as a kid. I never really planned on going this way but it’s also just how I’ve also evolved as a human being and how I’ve been portrayed on TV as well," Ripley said.
The former Raw Women's Champion also shared her thoughts on her current run, which has allowed her to work with legends like Rey Mysterio, Edge, and Beth Phoenix. She called the experience "insane" and made it clear that she's having the time of her life.
"I watched Edge and Rey growing up, to be able to go out there and share the ring with them in any sort of way is absolutely insane. Even Beth Phoenix, being my dream opponent and just having her come out and protect Edge. These are the sorts of things that I will remember for the rest of my life. I’m having the time of my life and I think that comes across on TV as well. I’m generally really having fun out there and everything that I’m doing comes so naturally to me because it’s just how I would react to things," Ripley said.
Ripley recently stated that she loves getting fans worked up over her on-screen dynamic with Dominik. More information is available here.
