Former WWE Superstar accuses WWE of stealing his pitched character and handing it to Seth Rollins

Elias was released by WWE in September 2023, following the TKO merger.

Former WWE Superstar accuses WWE of stealing his pitched character and handing it to Seth Rollins

Seth Rollins (via WWE)

In September 2023, Elias‘ stint in WWE came to an end. After an underwhelming year, the company released him from his contract amid the TKO merger cuts. While speaking about his run in the promotion, the 36-year-old revealed that he once pitched a gimmick to Creative, which was then handed to Seth Rollins.

In an interview with Metro UK, Elias claimed that the ‘Monday Night Messiah’ character was his idea. The former 24/7 Champion would constantly come up with new characters and ideas. He further added that he had a vision for the Messiah persona, expressing how much he always wanted to improve on screen. Elias believed that he could’ve been a cult-like leader on the red brand, drawing inspiration from biblical themes.

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Despite all of this, the Pittsburgh-native star asserted that he wasn’t intending any disrespect toward Rollins. Instead, he understood that something like this was bound to happen. Having said that, the former Shield member turned heel in late 2019 after a disappointing Universal title reign. Joining forces with the AOP, who acted as his disciples, he went on to become the Messiah of Monday Night Raw.

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Meanwhile, one could easily argue that WWE couldn’t capitalize on Elias’ talent and charisma. Things went south for him when he reverted to the Ezekiel character in 2022. After feuding with Kevin Owens for a few months, he reverted back to his original gimmick. However, the damage was done by that point, and Elias ended up appearing sporadically until his eventual release.

Seth Rollins is currently on hiatus from WWE programming

Seth Rollins added another achievement to his legendary career at WrestleMania. For the first time, The Visionary main evented the Showcase of Immortals on Night 1. The Visionary pulled double duty at this year’s event. Despite losing both of his matches and his World Heavyweight title, Rollins played a crucial role in Cody Rhodes‘ triumphant win.

Seth Rollins
Seth Rollins (via WWE)

Since then, the Grand Slam Champion has been absent from WWE television. Rollins had knee surgery after the event and is currently recovering from it. The Architect initially suffered an injury in January, with many fearing he would miss out on his moment at WrestleMania.

However, Rollins opted for rehab and postponed surgery. A few weeks later, the former world champion extended his contract with WWE. He was recently spotted at the Kentucky Derby alongside his wife, Becky Lynch, with his new look raising a lot of eyebrows among fans online. At the moment, there is no reported timetable for his return to in-ring action.

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