ZZ Loupe Claims People Believed He Would Be Joining The Wyatt Family

The Wyatt Family ruled the roost in WWE for a long time and they faced off against formidable opponents such as The Shield, The Rock, John Cena, and more. Interestingly enough, former Tough Enough contestant ZZ Loupe made an interesting claim about The Wyatt Family.

Loupe, a fan favorite on WWE Tough Enough’s sixth season, finished as the runner-up to Bronson Matthews. Known as the “King Of The Swamp,” Loupe had fans speculating he’d join the Wyatt Family after an alligator appeared in some of their video promos.

While speaking during a recent interview with Developmentally Speaking, Loupe shared that he initially planned to bring his natural personality to WWE, though things didn’t go as expected. He explained that while many thought he’d team up with the Wyatt Family, his vision was to simply be “ZZ,” embracing his own stories, accent, and background. His goal was to be the fun-loving, easygoing character he naturally was, which he felt would resonate with fans without needing a more complex persona. Though he aimed to be a babyface, he mentioned he could still explore a heel role in the future.

“You remember when the Wyatt Family came out and they had the fella with the alligator? So many people thought I was going up there with the Wyatt Family. At the time, I was just going to be ZZ. That was my character. When you get in WWE, you have to create a gimmick. You have to create a persona, a character. Then, you have to live that gimmick and truly believe you are that way in order for that character to come to life and be perceived through a screen for all the viewers. I didn’t need to. I had the accent, I knew all the recipes. I have so many stories about alligators and where I’m from and what I did as a kid that I was just going to be fun-loving ZZ. I was always going to be a babyface. Well, that was the plan. Maybe one day in the future I’ll be a heel somewhere, from someone, but ever since I got home, I’ve just settled in.”

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ZZ also revealed why he was targeted at WWE’s Performance Center during Tough Enough. Regardless, ZZ Loupe never became a part of The Wyatt Family and perhaps that was for the best.