Fourteen-time world champion Randy Orton has high praise for the current leadership in WWE, specifically crediting Paul “Triple H” Levesque for fostering a more “talent-friendly” schedule that prioritizes family. On a recent appearance on What’s Your Story? with Steph McMahon, Orton discussed the positive cultural shift within the company.
Orton used a recent example of Triple H, WWE’s Chief Content Officer, missing a television taping to be with his family. “I was just talking to Hunter yesterday… he wasn’t at TV one week. And I… where is he? He was at Murphy’s softball game. It was the national championships,” Orton shared. “Just knowing that in the past that never would have happened, and knowing that now it’s okay, like, it just, it’s almost like, without even knowing it… he’s leading by example.”
He explained that this shift gives him and other performers confidence that they can request time off for important family milestones without fear of reprisal, something that wasn’t always the case in the past.
“There’s no question in my mind that if I say ‘Hunter… I’ve got this thing, and… it’s very important to me and my family and my kids… that I’m there,’ there’s no question in my mind that they’ll say ‘Done,'” Orton stated. “Like that is huge. That’s everything.”
Orton also credited Triple H as being his number one mentor in the business, helping to guide him through his younger days. “Your husband was probably the number one mentor,” he told McMahon. “Not because he’s in the room, and I’ll put him over like till the day I die, as far as like, seeing something in me early on that I didn’t see in myself, and then putting up with me as I started to kind of get the big head at a very young age.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit Whats Your Story? With Steph McMahon with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
