Last year, after Roman Reigns lost to Cody Rhodes at WWE WrestleMania 40, Paul Heyman found himself in a difficult position as a member of The Bloodline. In absence of Reigns, Solo Sikoa stepped up and declared himself to be the new Tribal Chief, and as the weeks went on, Heyman began to look more and more like a mess.
Appearing on Logan Paul's "Impaulsive" podcast, Heyman explained his thought process by sharing a lengthy anecdote about the different processes of actors Laurence Olivier and Dustin Hoffman in the movie "Marathon Man," with Hoffman opting to use method acting to get as deep into his character as possible. According to Heyman, he had to follow in Hoffman's footsteps for a very specific reason.
"I'm not that good of an actor, so I have to rely on helping myself get through that scene, or through the presentation, so people look and go, 'This dude's really stressed out,'" Heyman said. "Solo kept just bullying me and bullying me, and I'm falling apart. I'm not dying my hair, and my hair's going gray, and I'm showing up a little more unshaven every week ... and my pocket square's crooked and my suits aren't pressed."
The performance all led up to one big moment at Madison Square Garden, which saw Sikoa demanding that Heyman acknowledge him as the Tribal Chief. Heyman looked undeniably (and purposefully) terrible during the segment, and he confirmed that it's not a look he could've achieved without some serious preparation.
The "Wise Man" stated that he went above and beyond to ensure the audience could buy into the idea that he was overwhelmed with stress, beginning by sleeping for just 90 minutes the night before the confrontation. However, Heyman didn't stop there.
"Didn't shave for several days. Didn't wash my hair for several days," Heyman said. "Took the stuff that washes the dye out of your hair so that more gray [was] showing. I wanted the aging process, for a week, to be really defined. Ate like s**t for a whole week, like stuff that would upset my son."
Upon being handed the Samoan ula fala, Heyman refused to call Sikoa the Tribal Chief, causing The Bloodline to put him through the nearby announce table. Unsurprisingly, the crowd offered up a massive reaction to the physicality, giving Heyman exactly what he was after.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Impaulsive" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
