KZ: Hi Grayson! What’s your favourite move to perform in the ring?

G: I have a move and it has a few different names. I think The Grayson Waller Effect is the most common. It’s basically a move where I’m on the outside of the ring and because I’m so athletic, I dive roll from the outside into the inside of ring and then hit a stunner Stone Cold Steve Austin made very famous. No one’s ever done it before and I don’t think anyone would do it after, it’s very fancy.

KZ: How do you get the inspiration for your moves?

G: I spend a lot of time watching wrestling – not just wresting from today but from the past – and studying it. Also, finding ways to play with it because in wrestling you have to be very unique. If you’re not unique, people don’t respond to you as much, so you have to find a way to do your own thing. I look at what’s been done in the past and switch it up into the Grayson Waller way.

KZ: Have you had any cool fan encounters?

G: Usually wrestling fans are very quiet, they won’t approach you. This is random but we live near Disneyworld in Orlando, and Epcot has the Norway Pavilion, which is a little area based on Norway. For some reason, Grayson Waller is very big with the Norwegian community. Every week on TV there were signs that said ‘Norway loves Grayson’. Recently I went to Epcot and I went to Norway and went to one of the restaurants. The people that go to all the shows were there, and I said hello and took a photo. It’s cool to meet people who respond to you and you would never expect in that way of life. I didn’t know I was big in Norway and now I do.

KZ: You were a teacher before you joined the WWE, but what type of student were you?

G: No one will believe this; I was the perfect student. Legitimately. I had great grades; I never got a detention in high school. When I was in grade 7, I used to run to get to class first on time. I don’t know if my teachers would believe what I’m doing now.

KZ: Did you wrestle or play any sports as a kid?

G: I played a bunch of sports. I did a bit of Oz Tag, a little bit of basketball, pretty much everything you could do at school, but never wrestling.

KZ: Now you’re on SmackDown, is Roman Reigns as big as he looks?

G: He’s actually bigger. Somehow, he’s wider in person, so I’m not sure how that happens.

KZ: What did you think when you first saw your playable character in WWE 2K23?

G: I was impressed, they did a very good job. Not just with the looks, but also the little movements. They scan us and and then we see the final product. I was impressed they had my moves, little movements that I do during my entrance, that type of thing. It was fun after all these years of creating myself to have someone else to do it for me and do it well.

KZ: Are you much of a gamer?

G: When I have the time. Unfortunately, my schedule is really busy. When I have time, I love any sport games, so Madden NFL, FIFA, WWE 2K, any of those sport games I love to play.

KZ: When you have free time, what do you like to do?  

G: I’m pretty chill. Obviously with our job, I love going to the gym and going for a run and staying as active as possible. I’ve also got my little dog, he takes up a lot of my free time. Florida is very nice, so I like to take him around to the local parks and things like that. Anything chill because my job is very wild and crazy and lots of adrenaline.

KZ: Tell us about your dog!

G: My dog’s name is Gary. He’s named after Nathan Lyon, the cricketer, after Nice Garry. He’s a little mini–Australian Shepherd. I felt that if I’m an Australian in America I’ve got to bring the Australian with me, so he’s a little mini-Aussie and he’s got a little Aussie energy about him. He’s tricky though - he looks adorable but he has a little bit of demon in him. Just a little bit.

KZ: A little bit of Grayson Waller attitude there!

G: He does unfortunately. He takes after his father – that was my fault.

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