Roman Reigns Reportedly Taking ‘Significant Break’ From WWE After WrestleMania 39

WWE may find itself in a very interesting spot after WrestleMania 39: Without its top star in Roman Reigns.

According to WrestleVotes (h/t WrestlingNews.co), the Undisputed Universal Champion is slated for a “significant break” following WrestleMania, a hiatus that could potentially extend all the way to SummerSlam in August. Reigns will defend both of WWE’s world titles against Cody Rhodes in the Mania main event, but despite that match setting the perfect stage for Reigns to lose the championships he’s held for well over two years, WrestleVotes says those “plans are not certain.”

Wait—what? Rhodes vs. Reigns on the grand stage of WrestleMania sure feels like the time and place for Reigns and his cousins The Usos to drop their respective titles, leading to a full-fledged crumbling of his stable The Bloodline. That remains true whether or not Reigns takes a lengthy post-WrestleMania absence from WWE, and it would be a shocking development if Reigns walked out of WrestleMania as champion.

But make no mistake about it: WWE is going to really feel the effects of Reigns’ absence if he’s gone. No matter what.

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Over the past few years, Reigns finally became what WWE wanted him to be when the company started pushing him almost a decade ago. That, of course, is WWE’s biggest star and a substantial draw. Reigns, along with The Bloodline, has cemented himself as WWE’s top merchandise seller, a live event draw and a needle mover on Raw, SmackDown and WWE’s YouTube channel.

Once again named pro wrestling’s top draw in 2023, Reigns’ impact on the quality of WWE’s programming over the past year is undeniable. He has been the centerpiece of one of the most masterfully-crafted long-term storylines in the history of pro wrestling, elevating not just The Usos but also Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, Solo Sikoa and just about anyone he’s crossed paths with since The Bloodline first formed

Heading into WrestleMania 39, there are only two marquee storylines that are truly and consistently clicking—Rhodes vs. Reigns and The Usos vs. Zayn and Owens—and neither would be happening without Reigns. Outside of the Intercontinental Championship picture and the father-son feud between Rey and Dominik Mysterio, the remainder of WWE’s storytelling en route to WrestleMania has been mediocre at best.

The intricacies of Reigns’ dominance as “The Head of the Table,” however, are things we haven’t seen in WWE in decades, perhaps since the late 1990s when “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was feuding with Mr. McMahon. As a result, there isn’t an easy solution to losing a star like Reigns for any significant length of time, especially given that his expected absence would happen during what is traditionally a down period for WWE.

The post-WrestleMania lull is a very real thing, after all.

Year in and year out, there tends to be a significant viewership drop for WWE after WrestleMania. Casual fans seem to leave once the buzz surrounding WrestleMania erodes away, and many of WWE’s biggest part-time stars often go with them. This year should be no different as WrestleMania is once again part-timer heavy, with the likes of Lita, Trish Stratus, Logan Paul and John Cena all likely to vanish into thin air following WrestleMania 39.

With Brock Lesnar’s current WWE run also coming to an end and a cloud of uncertainty continuing to hang over Bray Wyatt, WWE’s star power is going to take a huge hit that can’t be fixed by any amount of surprise returns or NXT call-ups. Throw the loss of Reigns into the mix, and WWE’s undoubtedly stacked roster is almost assuredly going to be much thinner come May or June.

In an ideal world, WWE will use that time as motivation for the elevation of other stars. Rhodes should take over as WWE’s top overall star while the likes of Owens, Zayn and Seth Rollins should be pushed at the top of the card as well. There is also much more to The Bloodline’s story, with WWE reportedly having story arcs mapped out for the next year for arguably the greatest stable in WWE history.

That could—and should include—the downfall of The Bloodline, with Reigns at the very least feuding with Jey Uso and Solo Sikoa at some point. Depending upon how long of a hiatus Reigns takes, those feuds could be delayed until SummerSlam or the fall of 2023, when interest in WWE often peaks and TV viewership follows suit.

Regardless of whether Reigns retains his titles at WrestleMania—though he shouldn’t—or loses both titles or somehow loses just one, WWE has a plethora of creative directions it can take The Bloodline that don’t necessarily require Reigns to be around all the time. Reigns has been working a reduced schedule after signing a new WWE contract last year, and he has perfectly exemplified the old adage that less is more.

Whenever Reigns is around, it feels like a huge deal, which is something that is incredibly difficult to accomplish in an era of impatient wrestling fans. That’s good for Reigns, who will be just as critical to WWE’s development after WrestleMania as he is right now.

That will put WWE in an unfortunate position after WrestleMania—maybe just for a few weeks or maybe for a few months.

But it’s safe to say that it won’t be easy for WWE to replicate its recent storyline success if Reigns isn’t around for an extended period, so WWE will need to rely heavily on the Usos and Sikoa to keep The Bloodline interesting with Reigns around even less often.

Meanwhile, the pressure will be on Rhodes, Rollins and other main eventers to carry the load in Reigns’ absence.