Bobby Lashley Reveals That WWE Once Wanted To Give Him A "Mr. T" Gimmick

Bobby Lashley and Lana's wedding ceremony ended 2019 as their story with Rusev has become one of the biggest parts of Monday Night RAW. Paul Heyman via his backstage role on RAW has been instrumental in building this storyline, and Lashley was asked by Sports Illustrated about his relationship with Heyman.

"When I first started out, I came to OVW in 2004. There were a lot of different people who came through, and they were bringing different trainers and different writers putting the show together," Lashley said. "I remember when Paul Heyman first came, he called me up in the morning and said, 'Hey man, what are you doing? Let's go eat breakfast.' I'd never met Paul at this point, but we go and eat breakfast. It was unbelievable, we were there talking for four hours. I felt like I'd known him forever."

Lashley mentioned how writers were looking at a Mr. T gimmick for him.

"I didn't know this at the time, but Paul saw me?this big, jacked up dude?and didn't know me. And none of the other writers knew who I was. They were just writing on what they thought they knew of me?that I should be like Mr. T and run around like, 'I pity the fool!' But that's not me. And that's why Paul wanted to sit down and talk," Lashley said. "He knew he needed to write for this guy, but he didn't know who I was, and he wasn't going to just guess. So we just sat and talked forever, and he said, 'I get this guy.' And he got me over in a short amount of time.

"I'm a very subtle person. I come from a background where you shut up, you train, and you compete. That's what Paul saw, and everything he did from then on was highlighting who I was, not trying to put me in a box that didn't fit. That's why I was so excited when he came [as the Executive Director of Monday Night Raw], because I knew he gets me, could write for me, and put me in the right position and place on the show."

Lashley talked about his experience coming back to WWE, noting that everything has changed since his last run with the company.

"Coming back now on the roster, it's completely different across the board?how people act, how people get over, how the story is put together," Lashley said. "Everything is so different. Right now, we're trying to break me out of my comfort zone and have a little more fun."