MVP says working with Freddie Prinze Jr. on a WWE promo forced him to reconsider his old-school distrust of outsiders contributing to wrestling. He shared the story on Marking Out with MVP and Dwayne Swayze.
The assignment was a backstage go-home promo for MVP’s SummerSlam match against Jeff Hardy. MVP recalled that he and another WWE writer had built most of the promo but could not find the closing line.
Prinze suggested the missing finish.
“He gave the go-home line. All these years later, I don’t remember what it was.”
MVP said he begrudgingly accepted that the line completed the promo. After it was filmed, word came back that Vince McMahon liked it, while Big Show and other wrestlers also complimented the segment.
That experience led MVP to thank Prinze and spend time getting to know him. They discovered shared interests in combat sports and popular culture and remain friends.
“This Hollywood actor-writer guy could actually teach me something.”
MVP used the memory to argue that a person does not need to have wrestled to help someone construct a strong promo. He drew a distinction between writing dialogue and coaching its delivery, but said performers can still learn from qualified actors and writers.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit Marking Out with MVP and Dwayne Swayze, with a h/t to Wrestling Headlines for the transcription.
