Logan Paul is being misused

The Miz & Logan Paul vs. Rey & Dominik Mysterio

Celebrity matches in WWE are often a tough sell.

Wrestling fans are very protective of their small circle of entertainment. Because of this, they aren’t usually eager to welcome folks from outside the bubble into the wrestling fold. The audience can see through folks who are just stopping by to promote something, make a payday, and go on their way without any respect for the business. It’s easy to tell when celebrity guests don’t actually give a damn about professional wrestling.

Logan Paul has stuck around long enough that he doesn’t fit into that mold. He worked an angle with Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens at last year’s WrestleMania. He did some brief work with Miz last summer, helping accelerate the Miz/John Morrison breakup. Logan worked a bit with Happy Corbin and Kevin Owens. And now he’s signed on to work a match alongside the Miz against Rey Mysterio and his son Dominik.

That’s a decent amount of business in one year with WWE. Logan isn’t actively promoting anything and doesn’t need the money (though that paycheck is probably pretty hefty), so it’s likely he actually enjoys doing this. And while we’ve never seen him work a match, he’s got a good feel for wrestling.

Paul is easy to dislike, with his YouTube personality and just general douchiness. He’s a performer who knows how to lean into that obnoxious personality when need be. Logan doesn’t wilt in front of the cameras. He doesn’t seem out of place in a WWE ring. He’s the type of celebrity guest that really works for WWE.

That’s why it’s unfortunately that this story isn’t maximizing his talents.

At its core, this feud is Miz vs. the Mysterios and Oh Logan Paul is There Too. It’s not about him at all. It started with the Miz being angry that Rey Mysterio was the cover star for WWE 2K22. The Miz lost to Rey on the Kickoff of Elimination Chamber, with Dominik preventing him from cheating, and then took a 619 to father and son.

Because of that, Miz needed to recruit backup. After teasing Cody Rhodes, he introduced Logan Paul. And a match for WrestleMania was set up.

Paul showed up pretty consistently after that. He showed up to Raw in Cleveland with the Miz, where he didn’t seem too down with the Miz running down their hometown. He and Miz were on commentary for a Mysterios match and unsuccessfully tried a beatdown afterwards. And then he showed up last Monday night wearing Rey Mysterio’s mask that Miz stole from the luchador the week before.

While it’s not weekly, showing up four times to build a WrestleMania match is as good as you’re going to get from a celebrity. So it’s not that he’s not committing himself enough. It’s just as much time as Johnny Knoxville has been around for that Mania build and that celebrity feud is nailing it. But that’s because they’re giving Knoxville a spotlight, letting Johnny be himself, and Sami Zayn is playing perfect at selling Knoxville’s antics.

Instead of giving Paul some of the spotlight, he’s just a bystander for the Miz & Mysterios. This feud is completely overlooking Paul. He hasn’t cut a meaningful promo. His presence hasn’t added anything to the story. He’s just... there.

Given this is a story about respect, an outsider who doesn’t respect the business and just here to get paid makes sense. That’s who Logan Paul is in this story. It’s the role he could play without issue. But they’re not focusing on it. He’s not selling it and neither is the Miz. That just leaves him in the background as the events transpire around him.

Since Paul has the skill to carry his share of the program, it’s a shame they haven’t crafted the story so he can. Instead, he has just been there to be there. They found a spot for one of their celebrities but didn’t really tailor it to him.

The match itself will probably be mainly the Miz, though Paul has some boxing experience and wrestled in high school, so he should be able to hold its own. But celebrity matches are more about the build and anticipation. These aren’t professional wrestlers so we shouldn’t expect too much from the match itself. Bad Bunny is the exception, not the rule. When it came to build and anticipation, this program missed the mark.

The Miz and Logan Paul will battle Rey and Dominik Mysterio tomorrow at WrestleMania (Saturday), starting at 8 PM ET. Keep it here to CagesideSeats.com for all your WrestleMania coverage on both nights.