Roman Reigns not advertised for WWE TV or house shows in July or August

We thought the case of Roman Reigns and the cryptic house show promo was closed. Hearing the Tribal Chief signed a new WWE deal with fewer dates seemed to explain his telling the Trenton, New Jersey crowd he might not see them again. Whether Reigns used his new free time to bond with family or pursue a career in Hollywood, word was this was all factored into the company’s long-term creative plans.

But the plot thickens!

Eagle-eyed observers noticed that Roman isn’t advertised for any Raw or SmackDown shows or non-televised live events from June 20-Labor Day (Sept. 5). That brought this update from Wrestling Observer Radio’s Dave Meltzer:

“I’m trying to get more information on this, but he was removed from all shows — his last show’s June 19th until after Labor Day. I don’t know what the situation is, other than he is scheduled for the two pay-per-view shows. But all TVs, all house shows — I don’t know if that means he’s doing a movie, I don’t know what it is. Obviously we already know that his schedule going forward, probably after late June, is going to be cut way back anyway, but there‘s a period where he’s gonna be not even be on television, because he’s removed from all the advertising.”

Meltzer and co-host Bryan Alvarez discussed how Reigns is still listed as a “Featured Superstar” for Money in the Bank on July 3, SummerSlam at the end of that month, and Sept. 3’s Clash at the Castle (he is not, however, on the page for next month’s Hell in a Cell event). It’s not clear if he will return for those summer stadium shows after building programs “via satellite” like his cousin Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has on occasion in the past, or if he’ll be pulled from advertising closer to the date of the show as WWE did with Brock Lesnar & WrestleMania Backlash.

Not having Reigns as a draw for those stadium shows would be less-than-ideal. There’s also, of course, the matter of the WWE and Universal title belts he’s currently carrying around with him. Are we going to get a couple months of Raw and SmackDown without the top men’s champion?

We’ll see what else we find out in the days and weeks between now and Roman’s apparent hiatus start date next month. In the meantime, know that your Tribal Chief is having fun with the rumors...

Stay tuned.