We met WWE Superstar The Miz in Tokyo when he was in town for the Japan leg of WWE Live and here's what the self professed 6-foot-1, 220 pounds of pure solid hunk has got to say about his career in wrestling, life and of course in gaming in our exclusive one-on-one.
On Gaming
The Miz: Whenever I play WWE2k14 I play as myself a lot - that goes without saying. I guess that you can say that whenever you are in a video game - as a child you always wanted that to happen. I remember playing a lot of Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter ... you know. Super Mario Bros. You see I'm old school. As a kid, life was all about video games but as I get older, I played less of them. I still play Madden and WWE 2K14 whenever I have the chance and Angry Birds!
The Miz on playing as his character on WWE games
The Miz: I was a little upset with the older titles because my power was lower than a (WWE) Diva. Cuz when you're a WWE Superstar and you want to show it off to your friends - " Yo guys! I'm in this video game!" - and they used the Diva and they start whooping on you. That's not the best situation for your bragging rights so I jacked up my points as much as possible. And those guys at 2K better put my stats where they are supposed to be!
Being on tour and gaming with his fellow wrestlers
The Miz: WWE usually has a tournament during Wrestlemania time but I don't remember who won. I wasn't included in the tournament and I think the reason they did not put me in it is because they knew I'd win and whenever it is a sure thing, you don't want that because it gets boring.
Who's the best gamer (apart from The Miz, of course)
The Miz: Kofi Kingston spends night and day playing video games... Hornswoggle too.
I don't think they really have a life other than playing video games which is fine. That is wonderful for them. I don't need to practice that much. I'm naturally talented.
On John Cena being on the cover of WWE 2k15
The Miz: What else can I say? I'm a WWE Superstar and I am very, very competitive.
I have a live audience around me that I get to manipulate
Obviously I'd love to be on the cover of the game and I think it'd be a great cover. I'm a cross-brand-entertainment and multimedia sensation superstar so I think I'd do pretty well on a video game cover but John Cena is our (WWE) cover boy right now.
I've been gone for a while and now that I'm back, hopefully the guys at 2K would look at another WWE Superstar to be on the cover of their next WWE game.
On his return to WWE after a brief hiatus
The Miz: The reason I was gone was because I was filming a movie - The Marine 4. When you are filming a movie, you don't get that live audience feel. After I am done with a take, I don't get a crowd cheering or booing me. But when you are in that WWE ring; there is nothing like that live audience reaction. Whether they are cheering me or booing me - there is no other sensation like WWE's live audience. It's theatre man.
You can sit and talk all day about New York city theatres but WWE is a theatre too. Being in that ring, I have a live audience around me that I get to manipulate and I only have one take which is my favorite part about all this - the added pressure. Once that red light goes on, you're ready to go.
On being in the ring with his wrestling idols - and masquerading as The Rock
The Miz: I was a teenager during the Attitude Era and I was always a big The Rock fan. So to actually being able to emulate and be 'him' in a segment was pretty cool. And for the audience to actually believe that it was actually The Rock - for not only when I came out, but for me to be walkind down the aisle, to get into the ring, hitting a Rock Bottom and they are still cheering me, not realizing I was not The Rock.
I'm not a Samoan OK? People were so excited that they didn't care. It was incredible. Part of the getup was that I put a lot of tanner on to darken my skin to look closer like The Rock.
On The Miz's Main Influence
The Miz: Through my WWE Championship reign, people looked at me as a champion that could be beaten by anyone, anytime, anywhere and I would always snake one out and that's an homage to what Ric Flair used to do. (Ric) Flair wasn't the biggest guy. He wasn't the most technical.
But he had that 'it' factor. He had that something that you'd want to go watch each and every week. When I got the WWE Championship, I want to be that guy.
I want to be the guy that everyone look at and goes "I can whoop him" and then literally jump into that ring.
I want to be the guy that everyone look at and goes "I can whoop him" and then literally jump into that ring.
That's the guy I want to be and I proove them all wrong for all 160 days. From Randy Orton to WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler to John Cena - defeated them all and I think the ratings were at an all time high because everyone wanted to see me lose that title.
Whether because I had a reality background or because I wasn't big enough or because I wasn't technically sound - there is always an excuse.
I didn't care. I wanted to proove myself and hopefully I did.
His most satisfying win
The Miz: It's pretty simple actually. Wrestlemania 27. Whenever you get to be on the main event - Wrestlemania - the show that you've watched growing as a kid. In your living room with 10 of your buddies. I remember watching The Rock vs Austin which was like 2-3 years in a row and I would always go for the Rock while my friends would go for Austin.
We'd all be eating pizza, my dad's girlfriend would be making us some cupcakes and we would just watch it. And then ten years later, I'm that guy. I'm that guy in the ring with the Championship in the main event with all the people in that living room in the front row.
While Cena's entrance was going on, I got to look at them and said "Guys, I did it.". It was the most satisfying moment in my entire life because they were there to watch me. They were the people that always supported me no matter what.
The most 'fun' wrestler to work with in the ring
The Miz: When it comes to chemistry - where there is something about it that people want to see which makes it immortal; I'd say working with John Cena, Randy Orton, CM Punk, Dolph Ziggler, Zack Ryder - any of those guys are always a real pleasure because there is something about them that the audience gravitates to and when ride into the ring and ruin that, that makes me feel so much better.
Being The Miz - In and outside of the ring
The Miz: I think everyone has a mask. I think everyone shelters themselves in some shape of form. When I was on The Real World which was a popular show in the States, I created a mask that was called The Miz which is my wrestling character and allows me to tell every one how I felt. If there were any repercussions - I would say - "I blame it on The Miz. I'm Mike. It wasn't Mike. It was The Miz!".
I think people wear masks because of some insecurities. Now, I'm more comfortable in my own skin. I've grown up a lot through the years. Even when I was in the beginning of my life in the WWE, I'd tell you "Oh no. There's no mask!" but there will always be insecurities that you will have to deal with. I do it every day just like everybody else but I think I'm better at concealing them.
Being sort of a party pooper
The Miz: I don't know why but I don't mind people booing me. Some people get really offended and are self-conscious about it but I don't it. I guess it is because ever sinceI was a kid, whenever I walk into a room people would go "Awwwgh! Mike's there" but they love me. You know what I mean? It's one of those situations you know.
The Miz will feature in 2K's WWE 2K15 which hits shelves October 28 on the PS3, PS4, Xbox One and Xbox 360. For everything WWE2k15, be sure to check all of the exclusives which we covered via our month-long of IGN First last August.
For all things WWE, WWE2k15 and of course, more WWE Superstars, keep it locked on to IGN.
The above interview was conducted in Tokyo a couple months back during the Japan leg of WWE Live - WWE Live in Tokyo. WWE Live is set to hit Malaysia when WWE Live Kuala Lumpur takes place on the 10th and 11th of October 2014 in Stadium Putra Bukit Jalil.
If you're in Kuala Lumpur, be sure to head on to Paradigm Mall on the 6th of September at 3pm as The Miz will be making a special appearance to meet his fans.
Kenn is Editor at IGN Asia and is a huge wrestling fan growing up. His favorite tag-team was none other than The New Age Outlaws. Oh You Didn't Know?
cheezburger.com
No comments:
Post a Comment