Steph De Lander describes what she learned during her time as Persia Pirotta.
De Lander signed with WWE in 2021, and she had a brief run on WWE NXT as Persia Pirotta. During her time on the show, she was featured in a storyline romance with Duke Hudson, and the duo feuded with Indi Hartwell and Dexter Lumis. WWE released De Lander in a wave of cuts in April 2022, and she has since become one of the top stars on the independent scene.
Speaking with Bill Pritchard of WrestleZone, De Lander was asked to describe what she learned during her time as Persia Pirotta.
“I think I learned from that, which I kind of already knew, but I think that experience really solidified for me that sex sells, and if that’s an element that you have as part of your character, it’s a great way to get views. It’s a great way to make money. It’s a great way to connect with a certain fanbase. That is what I took away from that. It was like everyone is interested by sexual content, whether it’s a child, an adult, a male, a female, a grandma. Whatever it is, if you see something sexually provocative on television, it’s gonna turn people’s heads, and it’s gonna catch their attention, even if it’s for a second. Even if they like it, they don’t like it, they disagree with it, whatever it is, it gets people talking, and I realized that. So I definitely kind of kept in line with that with my lipstick and my OnlyFans and some of my merch and all of that. Towing that line, being a little bit cheeky, being a little bit inappropriate, but in a fun way. But that’s my personality anyway. That’s not something new. But yeah, that’s an element from Persia that I’ve definitely kept with Steph de Lander," De Lander said.
De Lander was also asked to describe how much of the Persia Pirotta character was her. She stated that the character wasn't her, as most of her lines were written for her word-for-word. However, she explained she was more invested in the parts of the character where she got to push the limits. De Lander noted that she aimed to get traction by making it over-the-top.
“None of it was me. Especially at that time, pretty much all of our lines were written word-for-word for us, and there wasn’t much…I mean, when you’re a low-level character on NXT, you don’t have creative control. That’s silly to think that you would. I wouldn’t say any of that was me. I would say the parts of it that were me were pushing the limits. When we did things that were really risqué or when we did things that were pushing the limits or too sexual, all that kind of shit, that’s where I was really on-board for it because I was like, ‘Look. If we’re gonna do this, if you’re making me make out with someone every week who’s not my boyfriend, then we need to have something to show for it. So let’s go balls to the wall. Let’s go as ridiculous and over the top as possible so at least it’ll gain traction and get views and all of that, which it did.’ So that side of it, once we were given the story, then I was like, ‘Okay, let’s go 110%. Let’s commit to it.’ So that side, as far as going really far, that was me. But I feel a lot more connected to what I’m doing now than I did back then," De Lander said.
De Lander previously reflected on her run in WWE. Check out her comments here.
Click here to say what De Lander had to say about wrestling in front of Ron DeSantis at the WWE Performance Center.
At the Premier Streaming Network Wrestling Showcase on September 9, De Lander will face Rachael Ellering in a match for the Wrestling Showcase Women’s Championship.
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