Add as a preferred source on Google AJ Styles criticized the third season of WWE: Unreal, the Netflix docuseries that takes viewers behind the scenes in WWE. Beyond taking issue with that level of access, the WWE Hall of Famer said a conversation he had with John Cena was edited and taken out of context.
On the debut episode of The AJ Styles Show, the retooled version of his Phenomenally Retro podcast, Styles looked back at his match with Cena at Crown Jewel in Perth, Australia on October 11, 2025. Cena went for a 619 during the match, only for Styles to cut him off with a clothesline.
“I told the story about John hitting the 619, and he was saying, ‘Cut me off.’ They cut it to where it looks like I said, ‘Okay.’”
“The first time he asked me, they cut it. He said it, and my hair was in my face. You couldn’t see me, so they just spliced in ‘Okay’ right there.”
“That’s not what happened. He asked me three times, and on the third time I said, ‘Okay.’”
Styles said his answer was edited in over Cena’s first request, making it look like he went along with the call right away.
“Here’s my take on it. Do I like it? I do not, because the outsider hasn’t earned the right to know what I know and be where I’ve been.”
“They don’t get the opportunity to get into the ring and hit the ropes as much as they would like to. They shouldn’t get that opportunity.”
“I paid a price, and it’s something that I’m going to have to deal with for the rest of my life with these injuries that I’ve accumulated and the abuse that I put on my body.”
“A lot of other guys have done the same. In my old-school opinion, they don’t deserve it. They haven’t earned the right to know what goes on, what is said and all these things.”
Styles has made the same point before. In May, when the podcast was still called Phenomenally Retro, he said he enjoyed WWE: Unreal and WWE LFG as entertainment but wasn’t comfortable with how much access the public is given.
“It’s just my opinion. That’s all it is. But if there’s a way that they can make money off this, they’re going to. That’s kind of where we’re at in this business.”
“When it comes to WWE and who is owning WWE, it’s all about making money and finding ways to do that. That’s what this is.”
The third season of WWE: Unreal hit Netflix on July 21, with five episodes running roughly 50 minutes each.