CJ Perry (Lana) recalls what Vince McMahon told Rusev when he dropped weight in 2019:
“He goes, ‘I want my 300 pound Bulgarian Brute. That man puts asses in seats. That heel.’ He goes, ‘I want you as a heel, I want you 300 pounds, Bulgarian Brute, because that sells tickets.’
“You (Rusev) said, ‘Turn me heel brother.’ You said, ‘I’m the best heel in the business, turn me heel.’
“I’ll never forget this. Vince was like, ‘I have so many babyfaces, but I don’t have any 300 pound Bulgarian Brutes.’
“What he was saying is that, in this world, Eastern Europeans and Russians are conditioned to be the bad guys, and I know you have studied all the greatest bad guys and villains in TV and movies, and you had really perfected that.
“And that was really in my opinion his back way of complimenting, saying you’re the best at being a villain.”
(source: Identity Crisis)