Sami Zayn Says He Has Fully Turned Heel but Admits the Crowd Reaction Is Not Going as Planned

Sami Zayn insists he has turned heel — but the crowd is not entirely cooperating, and he is candid enough to admit it. Speaking to the Toronto Sun ahead of his WWE Backlash United States Championship match against Trick Williams, Zayn offered a nuanced and self-aware account of what his character shift has actually looked like on the ground versus what he envisioned.

“I’ll disagree with your statement — I fully turned heel. I think I’m trying to play this one a little different. We’re kind of writing these reactions which are different week to week. I had this idea for a slight character shift that would be a little outside the box and split the audience a little bit. Sometimes things don’t work out exactly how you envision it,” Zayn said.

The reality of fan reaction has been more complicated than a clean boo. “I’m getting booed, but then I’m high-fiving fans on the way to the ring. There was this one week I got booed heavily, and then I stayed in the ring during the commercial break, and all these fans were waving and showing little hearts. I was like, what’s going on here?” Zayn admitted.

Sami Zayn Says Kicking a Mannequin Below the Belt May Have Confused Fans About What He Was Going For

“To be fair, if you kick a mannequin ginger-beard man below the belt, that might upset people because people want to have fun. I think this polarizing thing — talking about my ride-or-die fans who haven’t turned their backs on me — I think there’s fun there. I like giving fans a choice, like you can be on either side of the fence. But I don’t think I fully embraced the dark side as you maybe put it,” Zayn said. Zayn challenges Trick Williams for the WWE United States Championship at Backlash on May 9 in Tampa, with the match airing free on ESPN2 during the first hour of the show.