Paul Heyman: Emmy Awards ‘should be ashamed of themselves’ for not recognizing Roman Reigns

For nearly four full years, Roman Reigns was WWE’s undisputed No. 1 star. Paul Heyman, who was Reigns’ on-screen Wiseman during that run, felt it was Emmy-worthy.

Heyman, as a guest on The Ariel Helwani Show, not only praised the Tribal Chief character of Reigns (real name Joe Anoa’i) but compared him favorably to other television villains. Furthermore, Heyman criticized the Emmy Awards for ignoring professional wrestling’s top performances.

Paul Heyman calls Roman Reigns the GOAT.
#HelwaniShow pic.twitter.com/JIO2PshAzh

— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) August 6, 2025

“Joe Anoa’i’s portrayal of the Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns, was the most compelling villain on television,” Heyman said. “And the most ruthless character I’ve seen to this day. And the fact, and we’ve discussed this before, that the Emmy Awards do not recognize these performances is a blight upon the Emmy Awards. They should be ashamed of themselves for ripping off their audience by not acknowledging, all puns intended, our body of work.”

Heyman also noted the many things that happened during Reigns’ run. Those included a raise in WWE’s stock price, the merger with TKO and the company’s $5 billion deal with Netflix. He also noted the timing of Reigns’ run, which began during the pandemic when WWE shows were done in empty buildings, and praised Reigns for leading the way out of that.

“Roman Reigns came back in August 2020,” Heyman said. “Got put with Brock Lesnar’s advocate. I became the special counsel to the Tribal Chief and later just known as The Wiseman. And it was on the back of Roman Reigns that WWE got lifted out of the pandemic era.”