While the buzz around WWE Tough Enough continues to build, NZPWI put five questions to Maniacs United’s Jackson Shield holder, Kingston Eclipse, regarding his application for the reality series.
Eclipse shared his thoughts on how to stand out among the thousands of applicants, whether WWE NXT will be impacted by Tough Enough’s return, and the all-star judging panel of Daniel Bryan, Hulk Hogan, and Paige.
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NZPWI: Tough Enough applications are coming in from all over the world. How can you make yourself stand out amongst thousands of applicants?
Kingston Eclipse: I believe solely in character and luring the audience into a fantasy land where I take them through a story from the time I walk through the curtain, into the ring, wrestle, and walk back through the curtain in the end. So, in other words, what would make me stand out amongst the rest is my character and my unorthodox style of combat fighting/wrestling.
If you were selected, what would you hope to learn from the Tough Enough experience?
This may sound cheesy and a bit too cliché but I hope to learn how to keep a level head whilst performing on the biggest stage in front of thousands of people in attendance and millions sitting at home watching it on TV. There’s nothing worse than wrestling and appearing on TV and in the midst of it get stage fright and messing up. Performing on Tough Enough would help me stay level headed.
Chris Jericho has been announced as the host of this season of Tough Enough, with Daniel Bryan, Hulk Hogan, and Paige part of an expert panel. What’s your take on this line-up?
This is a great line-up because we get advice and feedback from past, present and future WWE Superstars all at the same time. Chris Jericho and Daniel Bryan know what it takes to live up to the hype in being a main event star. Paige knows exactly how hard it is to go from a rookie to a Superstar. Hulk Hogan knows the ins and outs in what it takes to make it in this business. Overall, this is a great line-up in regards to advice and feedback.
Have you watched Tough Enough in the past? If so, which was your favourite season of the show?
In all honesty, I have not watched a single episode of Tough Enough but I have watched a few snippets on YouTube. The clip or snippet that comes to mind is when Triple H is amongst a bunch of rookies telling them how to bump, sell and tell a story. I don’t wanna sound “old fashioned” but nothing beats basics.
NXT has long been heralded as the breeding ground for future WWE talent. Will the return of Tough Enough change this perception?
I’d say any opportunity is good opportunity. The many avenues, the better. The Tough Enough series should show the NXT wrestlers that there are hungry lions wanting a spot in the NXT roster and are waiting for that experience to really break through and shine.
