Elayna Black Says WWE Spotlight Left Her ‘Very Insecure’ About Her Body
TNA’s Elayna Black told a company documentary she struggled with body-image insecurity during her WWE/NXT run, saying outside scrutiny and a hurtful comment about her appearance undermined her confidence. She says she feels more secure in TNA.
Elayna Black told a TNA Wrestling documentary that her time in WWE’s NXT system left her feeling “very, very insecure” about her body and dented her confidence as a performer.
Black said she signed with WWE at 19 and that the increased public attention — amplified after her first public relationship — made her aware that her appearance and every action could be scrutinized. She described following coaching and trying to improve in the ring while feeling that other wrestlers were receiving opportunities she did not.
In the documentary segment, Black recalled a particularly cruel remark she says she was told during her WWE tenure: that she would never be a champion because she looked like she “couldn’t even crack an egg.” She did not name who made that comment.
Mustafa Ali, who also appears in the TNA video, addressed the different level of scrutiny female performers often face, saying it is “exponentially harder for the girls in the industry” and noting he has heard difficult accounts from women in wrestling about criticism of their appearance.
Black said her outlook has shifted since leaving WWE and joining TNA. She told the documentary that she now feels more comfortable with both her personal identity and her on-screen character, and that for the first time in a long while she feels confident in who she is.
The comments provide a personal look at what Black described as challenges that affected her early career and offer context for her current work in TNA.
