Sami Zayn Talks WWE Not Giving Him a Stereotypical Arab Gimmick, Comments on WWE Never Having a Positive Arabic Character

February 15, 2015

Former WWE NXT Champion Sami Zayn recently spoke to Sport 360 during WWE’s tour of Abu Dhabi, and the following are some highlights:

On representing Arabs in WWE:

“It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do in terms of being an Arab presence in an Arab market as I don’t think a lot of people have been able to do it in wrestling. Certainly in the WWE there has never been a positive Arab image so if I can contribute to that then I feel great about that. Not just for myself but the whole Arab market.”

On WWE not giving him a stereotypical gimmick:

“I’m very proud that I can be myself. I’m not trying to be Arabic, I’m just being me and I happen to be Arabic. I think that might be refreshing to some people and it’s a bit more realistic than these pantomime villains we’ve seen before. Hopefully I can change some people’s perceptions being a down-to-earth human being that happens to be Arabic. Whether you’re Arabic or Portuguese it doesn’t really matter. A dude’s a dude!”

Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.

Nick attended New York University and graduated in 2001 with a degree in Drama.

Nick first entered the internet wrestling community back in 2004 when he became the co-host of The Voice of Wrestling Radio Show. From there, Nick made the transition from radio personality to editor when he began working with WrestleZone in 2008.

Nick is a member of two Off-Broadway theatre companies, Another Urban Riff, and the Drama Desk Award winning Godlight Theatre Company. Nick has appeared in over a dozen Off-Broadway plays since he moved to New York City, and has shot several short and feature length films. In 2010, he completed principle photography on a film titled "How to Score Your Life," which also features TNA Knockout ODB.

Inspiration in his life has come from many people including his family, Woody Allen, Steven Spielberg, Jack Nicholson, The Beatles, and of course, Lassie.