Kelly Kelly Talks Possible WWE Return, Why She Missed Evolution 2, Divas Era, Being A Mom To Twins

Kelly Kelly (@TheBarbieBlank) is a professional wrestler best known for her time in WWE. She sits down with Chris Van Vliet at West Coast Creative Studio in Los Angeles, CA to discuss a possible return to WWE, why she turned down the invitation to appear at Evolution, teaming with Maria Menounos at WrestleMania 28, defending the World Heavyweight Championship with Edge, dream matches with current members of the roster, and more!
 

Quote I'm thinking about: "A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new." - Albert Einstein

On being a mom to twins:

"My whole life revolves around my kids now. I turn down so many things because I just know that I'm only gonna have this time with them for so long. I prioritize things. If my kid has something, or some event, I'm like okay, I can't do the signing, they just come first right now, and that's fine. I definitely feel like it's changed me as a person too. I don't even know who I was before kids. I look back and in my 20s I'm just like, oh my gosh, I don't even know that person, but I think it's probably a good thing. But I am finding that I think it is still important to have my own stuff, but finding a balance between it, because the mom guilt is real." 

On WWE stars still competing while having kids:

"It's wild. I commend them. I see Becky, who has her daughter on the road, Alexa, and they have their nannies. They're able to bring them on the road, which I think is so amazing, because not a lot of people are able to do that. So I think what they're doing is really cool." 

Do you think you could do it?

"Not with two. I don't know. I think with two you're pushing it. I just think it's already so much whenever I try to go out of town with them and we do vacations."

On whether she misses the fan reaction:

"I do, and I think that's why I come back for the Rumbles and I come back for the Evolutions and stuff like that, because it's like you miss that and you crave that, and it's just in the back of your mind, you're also worried. Are they gonna remember me? Are they gonna cheer for me, is my pop gonna be big? So that's going through your mind too, and you're just hoping that they remember you."

On turning down an invitation for Evolution 2025:

"I wanted to talk about this, because it was a thing. So when I got the call, it was in Atlanta, obviously. Again, it was one of the weekends, the only weekend I had off, and my kids, I think they had something going on. And I feel like when I come back, I want my kids to see me there and they wouldn't been able to make it. I don't know. There were just a lot of different things that were kind of keeping me from going. Of course, you read the dirt sheets and this is another thing. Somebody on the dirt sheets was like, 'Oh, somebody in the higher ups said that she only wants to come back if she has a match', which could not have been farther from the truth. I didn't need a match to come back. If it was in LA, I would have been there no questions asked. But to fly across the country to do that, like I said in the beginning, with my kids, I'm very picky about what I say yes and no to right now. Maybe when they're six or seven, and they're grown or bigger and stuff like that, then I probably would have done it. But it's just, like I said, that was the one weekend I had off. I didn't want to get them on a plane and do this. There was just a bunch of different things." 

Was it a last-minute call?

"It was. It was a last-minute call."

So it would have been possible if the call came six months ago?

"Probably. I would have been able to clear everything and make sure. I think my husband had to work that weekend too, so then I was gonna have to figure out my nanny situation. Like I said, if it was on the West Coast, I could have made it work. I could have figured something out. But my husband was having to work, he's an engineer. He's building the underground subways here in LA, and they were doing a night thing, so he was having to work. It was just a lot, and that's the thing, it had nothing to do with wanting a singles match. WWE knows exactly why I said no, and they were totally [fine with it]. They were like, 'When we're in LA, you'll be there?' And I'm like, Yes, I will be there. So that was never a conversation like, 'Kelly has to come back, she has to be in a match.' Never, never. And it's like, they [dirt sheets] said, 'Oh well, the higher up said she hasn't been in the ring in 13 years.' When I've done battle royals and stuff, I've gotten the call a week before, and I got in the ring and I wrestled every day. So it has nothing to do with that. Everybody that I talked to in WWE knows the reason. So it's just like for people to come out and be like, 'Oh, she thinks she's better than sitting in the crowd, and she thinks that she deserves a match.' No, I would have gladly [appeared in the crowd]. When they came for the Netflix thing. I wanted to go to that, because it was in LA. So it's just different circumstances that happen, and life, right? At the end of the day, I have to thank WWE for my career. They’re who made me, I wouldn't have the career that I have if it wasn't for them. I am so appreciative of them. That's why I signed a legends deal, and that's why I still come back all the time. But yeah, I think hopefully a few years down the line, when my kids will be able to sit next to me if I'm in the crowd, and cheer me on." 

On her last singles match:

"So TV was Eve Torres, but the last one was Nattie on a house show. I remember the TV match because it was a secret, because I had been out for a while. I've been out because I had hurt my neck, and so I was taking some time off. They called me and they were like, 'Are you ready to come back?' And I was like, Yeah. And they were like, 'We want you to be a surprise.' So they didn't announce me, and I had my Match with Eve and came out, and I think that was it, because after that, I think I was like, I don't know, I think my neck was hurting. There was, like, a bunch of things that happened, but I can't remember the house show."

On whether she got the chance to say goodbye in WWE:

"No, I know I got a call on my off day, yeah. I was like, I get it, I feel like I kind of have been slacking off too. And they were like, look, we know you want to do other things, go do them. We want to see you happy. We can tell you're not very happy here right now, and because I was happy not being on the road because I was seeing somebody. So I was like, Okay, I want to put time and effort into this. And it's like in your 20s, I was so young when I started that. I was 19, right? So I grew up in front of the WWE. I feel like my college experiences would have been in the WWE. So I had fun. I look back and I don't regret anything. I was like this was how I was meant to grow up. I grew so much in such a young age and I saw the world. I got to do so many things. And, yeah, it was just so lucky and blessed to be able to do that. I think when I was about 25-26 it was like, Okay, let's kind of see what else is out there and explore." 

On WrestleMania 28:

"Well, I remember Maria was flying in that morning too, so we didn't really have time to figure out the match, probably a few hours before. I know me, Beth and Eve had practice, and then we were gonna fill her in, this is what you need to do. But she was coming off of Dancing with the Stars, and she was in a lot of pain. She had broken her something ligament or something, but she was supposed to take the heat in the match. She's like, I got it. She was such a trooper. She's like, I'm gonna do it. I got it. I can do this. And we're just like, Okay. And that was the match I wanted to do the Molly go round. I had never done it, but I was like, I'm gonna make this match memorable. I'm gonna do this, and I wanted to do it for a long time. So I remember bringing it up to Fit, 'Hey, I want to.' He's like, 'All right, let's see, we'll pull the mat out. Let's see if you can.' I nailed it. And he was like, All right, let's do it. And Beth was like, You got this. So I only practiced it like two times, and just like praying to God everything went okay during the match at Mania. So we rehearsed it. I was so nervous. I just remember being so nervous like before every match, I was always so nervous. I would throw up, I threw up before every match, just go to a trash can on the side, and just, that's how I release my nerves. I was so nervous, I would say a prayer and throw up."

On defending the World Heavyweight Championship with Edge:

"I don't think I realized at the time how people [talked about it]. They were like, No, you were the only woman to defend the World Heavyweight Title in a match like that. It was a big deal, and I remember when they brought the idea to me, I think the night before I found out that I was doing I was like, Oh my gosh, I think we main evented that, which was really cool, too. And then they told me, Well you're getting fired that night. So Michael Hayes, this is such a funny story. The day of, they were like, 'Okay, you have all these pre-tapes, you're gonna end up winning at the end, but then Vickie's gonna come out and she's gonna fire you, and you need to cry. I need you to cry on command. Can you cry on command Kelly?' I'm like, 'I guess?' He was like, 'If you don't cry, it's all gonna go to sh*t. The fans need to feel this. They really need to feel like you're fired.' I'm like, Oh my gosh. I'm getting goose bumps thinking about it, because I had so much pressure. The match was so intricate, there was so many things in it. So right before going out, I’m like you're crying. You got this. So I told Michelle and Layla, I said, 'Okay, I need you to beat the sh*t out of me. I really need you to lay it in.' Because I can internalize it, and I can hold it all in until it's time for me to cry. I've done it before. So I was like, okay, I can do this. So they were like, Okay. So in that match, all that sh*t that they're hitting me with, they're laying that in. And I was like, Okay, I was building up. I was like, Okay, I'm gonna be able to do it. So I just remember doing the spear and just being so happy. And I just was like holding it in, because I knew she was coming out. Then as soon as she's like, ‘You’re fired!’ It was like the ugliest cry you could cry. It was so good. I was like, Yes, I'm doing it. The eyelashes and mascara is coming down. So I go to the back, and they're like, so it was really good."

On Santino calling her Kelly Kelly Kelly:

"He would do it every time we were in the ring or pre-tape. I tell people all the time, his goal was to make people break character and start laughing, and he would do it and you're just trying to turn away. Oh my gosh, he is so funny. And, yeah, we were all always dying. He is just a riot."

Did he tell you the nickname beforehand?

"No, on the spot. Because he wants that genuine reaction, right? So if he tells you before, you're like, Oh, that's funny, and then whatever. But if he waits till it's the camera's on, you're like, Oh my gosh." 

On dream matches on the current roster:

"Oh, there's so many amazing women. I love Charlotte, I think she's amazing. I think Tiffany is amazing. Chelsea Green, I just love that she's bringing the Divas kind of era back a little bit. It's so cool to see that."

What is Kellly Kelly grateful for?

"My kids, my husband and my health."

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