Add as a preferred source on Google EVIL will now be known as Naraku in WWE. The confirmation came on Tuesday’s episode of NXT, where a vignette aired during the show and announced his in-ring debut for next week, May 12.
In the video, the former NJPW champion spoke in Japanese about his journey in Japan, referencing the titles he won and saying he arrives in NXT at a time of major opportunity. His first target is already clear, as Naraku has set his sights on Tony D’Angelo, the current NXT Champion. According to Naraku, the gift delivered to the champion last week was not a simple gesture, but a declaration of war.
The name choice stands out because, earlier in the day, it had been reported that WWE could use Nox Raijin, a name the company recently trademarked. Instead, officials went in a different direction. Naraku can be translated as abyss, keeping him close to the darker presentation he built in Japan.
EVIL made his first NXT appearance on April 28, when he confronted D’Angelo.
Naraku wrapped up his New Japan run earlier this year, having last wrestled in January during the Road to the New Beginning tour.