Roman Reigns' reinvention as "The Tribal Chief" established him as the biggest name in WWE while propelling his entire family up the card alongside him. Originally, the character was created by Vince McMahon, and Paul Heyman thinks there was a small amount of autofiction in that creation."Uninhibited, uncontroverted, absolute devotion under any and all circumstances," Paul Heyman said while describing what the idea behind "The Tribal Chief" was as a character, during an interview on "INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet." He would go on to add that the character was meant to inspire complete submission from all of his followers. "It's devout worship. It's blind devotion. It's also the way to be blunt I used to see some people in the room when Vince would talk...""There were too many people, too many times, that any time Vince would say [they would nod]," he recalled. "In watching that, and then seeing other people you know just in Hollywood do (...) it's just an absolute worship, an absolute giving of oneself to the TribalChief because you must."Paul Heyman also added that Colonel Kurtz, Marlon Brando's character from "Apocalypse Now," was a major influence on Reigns's mad king."It's about a warrior, Kurtz, or a wrestler, Roman Reigns, who is a warrior of such magnificence that he takes over an entire island," he explained. "Well, it's not the island of Samoa, but it can be the Island of Relevancy."He further stated that, in his conquest, Reigns becomes a figure who provides security and sustainability to those beneath him, like Brando's character."They all rely on the General the Tribal Chief for that, and they all worship but let's not use the word 'worship,' let's use the word 'acknowledge.' So, they all acknowledge their Tribal Chief for the many things that he brings them," Heyman further explained, detailing how the various story beats have branched from that choice."Everything we did was by design. Everything was thought; overthought."If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet," and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
