Summary

Paul Levesque said Trick Williams works because his voice feels real, and he made the same larger point while addressing criticism of Je'Von Evans.

During a sit-down conversation hosted by Variety, Levesque said he cannot manufacture Williams' promo style for him because the appeal comes from Williams sounding like himself. He also said Evans' personality on screen matches who he is backstage, which was part of Levesque's response to Kevin Nash's recent comments about Evans needing more edge.

Levesque and Shawn Michaels also spoke about Evans' development as an in-ring performer, with both praising his upside while stressing the need to round out the rest of his game. Both Williams and Evans are set for championship matches on night two of WrestleMania 42.

What this means for Trick Williams and Je'Von Evans

Levesque's comments make it clear WWE sees authenticity as a major part of Williams' presentation, not something creative should smooth over. That fits with how Williams has been framed on television, and with the confidence he recently showed when he said he wants his own path instead of simply chasing another star's formula.

On Evans, the takeaway is slightly different. Levesque and Michaels both praised his athletic upside, but they also pointed to the next step WWE wants from him: sharper fundamentals to go with the highlight-reel offense that got him noticed in the first place.

Quotes

Quote from Paul Levesque

"I certainly can't write for Trick (Williams). To address it directly, I saw Kev make a mention of Je'Von (Evans) and saying, 'Well, I wish they treated his character differently. He's a little too much of this for me.' Somebody told me about it, I was like, 'It's just him...' That's just who he is. That's how he acts, that's how he talks to me backstage, that's how he is in the afternoon, and then, we just kind of give him the gist of what he's gonna say and then he goes and says it but, that's just who he is, and similar thing for Trick, I don't even know what the f*ck lemon pepper steppers are. It doesn't make any sense to me. It shouldn't. Yeah, it shouldn't. I can feel it when he says it, the cool stuff, or for the most part because I can feel the crowd react to it or I can feel the things that are clicking for him... If he runs dry on cool sh*t to say, he ain't getting it from me. The character that you put around it, the emotion that you put around it, your spin on it, all that stuff is really what makes it great."

Quote from Paul Levesque and Shawn Michaels

During the later exchange about Evans' long-term development, Levesque and Michaels said:

**Paul Levesque:** "I think about kids today. I just had this conversation with Je'Von (Evans) the other day, to say, 'Right now, you're the kid doing the sh*t that nobody else has ever seen before. Focus on punches, kicks. Focus on this other stuff, because a year from now, there'll be a kid doing sh*t that you are like, how's he doing that? And we'll all just be going like, remember when he was doing cool sh*t? Now he's doing the cool sh*t' and I said, 'You gotta have all that other stuff, otherwise, that quickly goes by the wayside.'"

**Shawn Michaels:** "I've mentioned that to, and Je'Von's one of 'em, is just, 'That's what gets you noticed, that's what gets you in the door. But then you're gonna have to build on that from that point forward.'"

Levesque later went on to say:

**Paul Levesque:** "He came to me. I talked to him a few weeks ago about changing up his punches and focusing on that because he's got the other stuff down. I said, 'So you don't need to learn a bigger flippy thing. You got that. Let's go learn how to throw a punch better than everybody else on this roster,' and then he came to me this past TV and was like, you know how he is, 'Bossman! I need you to watch my punches tonight,' and he immediately came back through the curtain, walked straight over and is like, 'Did you see 'em? Better? Getting better?' 'Yeah, they're getting better dude.'"

**Shawn Michaels:** "He's a good kid. No doubt."

**Paul Levesque:** "Hard worker, good kid. I love him. Yeah, he's awesome."

**Shawn Michaels:** "Thanks for taking him from us. Appreciate it."

**Paul Levesque:** "Yeah. That's the gig, man. You make 'em, I steal 'em."

**Shawn Michaels:** "That's the truth."

Sources

Paul Levesque and Shawn Michaels while speaking on Variety