CM Punk does not agree with the idea that you cannot put the toothpaste back in the tube when it comes to kayfabe in professional wrestling. During an appearance on ESPN’s This is Football, Punk was asked to give his thoughts on the Netflix documentary WWE: Unreal.
Punk admitted that he might not like some of the ways the show pulls back the curtain, but he believes everyone has always known that wrestling is a work. He views his job as a performer as the ability to blur the lines and make fans wonder if what they are seeing is legitimate or not.
“Little bit of a history lesson, I don’t think the general public ever really didn’t know that what we do. Like, the winking. I think if you’re smart about it, you gotta get even more creative,” Punk said. “I always say it’s what I do, I put the toothpaste back in the bottle. I make people go, ‘Oh, gosh, that, okay.’ And what I’m doing with Roman [Reigns] is absolutely no different. He has his stans [passionate fans]. I have mine. They see what we do on TV, and they analyze everything: ‘Oh, he really got mad at that.’ And therein lies the magic, therein lies the blurring of the line.”
‘Hard Knocks’ Comparison
Punk defended his World Heavyweight Championship against Roman Reigns is official for WrestleMania 42 this April. Their feud has played on supposed real-life heat between the two, with Reigns stating that he has always hated Punk. Punk used this rivalry as an example of how he manipulates the audience’s perception.
However, Punk also critiqued the documentary format, comparing it to the NFL series Hard Knocks. While he feels WWE: Unreal gives away too much regarding the mechanics of the business, he praised the show for highlighting the human side of the roster.
“Yeah, I do think we give away too much on ‘Unreal.’ To me, the positive side is how it shows the human people behind the scenes. I like that as pieces on individual athletes. It’s the same reason why I enjoy watching [NFL’s] ‘Hard Knocks.’ Whereas I’m not the biggest football fan, I’m not totally invested in the season, I’ll watch the Bears, I’ll root for the Bears. But ‘Hard Knocks’ is fascinating because you get to see these guys. You see them interact with their kids, their wives, and you see all that. There’s that human element, and I think ‘Unreal’ is great for that. I don’t necessarily need a camera showing you guys talking to each other about a match,” Punk stated.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit ESPN’s This is Football with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
