John Layfield
Acting
Biography
John Charles Layfield is an American retired professional wrestler and current wrestling commentator/host for WWE, where he performs under the ring name John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL). Outside of his WWE work, Layfield is a financial analyst for Fox News. Within WWE, he was previously known by the ring name Bradshaw, and prior to that, the variations Justin "Hawk" Bradshaw and Blackjack Bradshaw (as half of The New Blackjacks with Blackjack Windham). As JBL, Layfield was WWE Champion for 280 days. Layfield's main gimmick as JBL—a wealthy, gladhanding, big-mouthed, fiery-tempered businessman—was based on Layfield's real-life accomplishments as a stock market investor. Layfield is a guest panelist on Fox News Channel's The Cost of Freedom, has appeared on CNBC, and has written a best-selling book on financial planning called Have More Money Now. Layfield also hosts a weekend talk radio program, syndicated nationally by Talk Radio Network, in which he discusses his conservative political views. Layfield is also employed by Northeast Securities as its Senior Vice President. In WWE, Layfield won 24 total championships including one reign as WWE Champion, one reign as United States Champion, one reign as European Champion, seventeen reigns as Hardcore Champion, one reign as Intercontinental Champion, and three reigns as World Tag Team Champion with Faarooq as part of the Acolytes Protection Agency (APA). He is also recognized as the twentieth Triple Crown Champion, and the Sports Illustrated has said that Layfield "has been accused for years of being a locker room bully", while Deadspin wrote that "backstage tales of Layfield's hazing and bullying have long been legend among hardcore wrestling fans."[136] Dayton Daily News described that "YouTube has dozens of interviews where former [WWE] performers discuss harassment, bullying and taking real blows from Layfield while wrestling him in supposedly choreographed matches." Le Journal de Montréal listed Mark Henry, Matt Hardy, René Duprée, Daivari, and Ivory, among others, as wrestlers who in interviews described Layfield as a bully.In 2010, The Miz referenced Layfield in an onscreen promo about hazing he faced in the locker room early in his career. Layfield admitted to hazing Miz and said that he did not regret doing so. In April 2017, WWE commentator Mauro Ranallo took an absence from WWE, which Dave Meltzer reported had been triggered by hostilities with Layfield. The allegations coincided with the release of former WWE ring announcer Justin Roberts' autobiography, in which he alleged that Layfield encouraged Johnny Nitro and Joey Mercury to steal his passport. Angered WWE fans subsequently called on WWE to fire Layfield. On April 22, Newsweek reported that Ranallo and WWE "mutually agreed to part ways", and Ranallo released a statement in which he said his departure had "nothing to do with JBL" after liking tweets that implied JBL was the main reason. Layfield released a statement of his own, stating: "Admittedly, I took part in locker room pranks that existed within the industry years ago. WWE addressed my behavior and I responded accordingly, yet my past is being brought up because of recent unfounded rumors. I apologize if anything I said playing ‘the bad guy’ on a TV show was misconstrued.
Known For
A regularly scheduled, live, year-round program featuring some of the biggest WWE Superstars.
Raw
Wrestlers will portray heroes or villains as they follow a series of events that build tension and culminate in a wrestling match or series of matches.
WWE NXT
The superstars of World Wrestling Entertainment's "SmackDown" brand collide each and every Friday on WWE Friday Night SmackDown.
WWE Friday Night SmackDown
WWE Main Event is a professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that airs on Peacock and streams on Hulu Plus in the United States. The show features WWE wrestlers and complements WWE's primary programs Raw and SmackDown.
WWE Main Event
Feel the heat of the Attitude Era as WWE Superstars such as "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and The Rock compete in exclusive matches.
WWE Heat
A professional wrestling television program produced by the World Wrestling Federation banner on NBC airing in place of Saturday Night Live. The series was made up entirely of star vs. star bouts in a time when weekly programming consisted primarily of established stars dominating enhancement talent.
WWE Saturday Night's Main Event
The American professional wrestling promotion WWE has been broadcasting PPV events since the 1980s, when its classic "Big Four" events (Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, SummerSlam, and Survivor Series) were first established with the company's very first PPV being WrestleMania in 1985. The company's PPV lineup expanded to a monthly basis in the mid-1990s following the introduction of the In Your House series of pay-per views before expanding even further in the mid-2000s during the first WWE brand extension. Following WWE's original brand extension in 2002, the company promoted two touring rosters, Raw and SmackDown, representing its television programs, Raw and SmackDown. The traditional "Big Four" continued to showcase the entire roster, while the remaining PPV events alternated between Raw and SmackDown cards. In March 2007, WWE announced that all subsequent PPV events would feature performers from all brands. In 2008, all WWE PPV events began broadcasting in high-definition.
WWE Pay Per View
The Huntress is an American TV series that appeared on the USA Network over subsequent summers of the 2000 and 2001 television seasons. It was inspired by a book about the real bounty hunter, Dottie Thorson, and is also a belated sequel to the 1980 Steve McQueen film, The Hunter.
The Huntress
Relive some of the best moments in WWE history with our new docuseries 'The Best Of WWE' ! Then, now and forever. These are the greatest matches and moments that have made WWE what it is today. Featuring countless WWE Hall of Famers and Legends, as well as today's greatest Superstars, this anthology series digs deep into the WWE vault to present hundreds of hours of classic in-ring rivalries and memorable confrontations. Featured Superstars include Roman Reigns, Hulk Hogan, Undertaker, John Cena, Becky Lynch, The New Day, Alexa Bliss, Drew McIntyre, The Rock, "Macho Man" Randy Savage, Charlotte Flair and more.
The Best of WWE
Actor and former WWE writer Freddie Prinze Jr. leads a roundtable discussion of WWE luminaries to delve into the storylines and dynamic characters behind the epic battles that built WWE. Each one-hour episode features archival footage from WWE’s library as well as interviews with the Legends involved and the Superstars who watched these rivalries unfold.
WWE Rivals
Finding truth at the intersection of fantasy and reality in the veiled world of professional wrestling.
Dark Side of the Ring
WWE Tough Enough is a professional wrestling reality television program produced by WWE where in participants undergo professional wrestling training and compete for a contract with WWE.
WWE Tough Enough
Discover rarely-seen matches from the 1970s, '80s, and '90s featuring countless WWE Hall of Famers such as Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair.
WWE Old School
The stories behind some of the most memorable WWE Superstars of all time.
Biography: WWE Legends
Celebrating WWE's awesome history; reliving the moments that made fans go, "This is awesome!"
WWE This Is Awesome
The anticipated WWE Network docuseries will look back on The Undertaker’s storied WWE career and place a focus on the ongoing challenges the wrestling legend appears to have with a career beginning to near it's end.
Undertaker: The Last Ride
WWE Backstage is a professional wrestling studio show where hosts and guests discuss the biggest news and stories in the WWE.
WWE Backstage
Relive the most intense, most personal rivalries in WWE history through this one-hour WWE Network original series. Featuring such rivalries as Mr. McMahon vs. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan vs. "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, The Rock vs. John Cena, and more, WWE Rivalries tells the in-ring and backstage stories about these unforgettable rivals.
WWE Rivalries
The JBL and Cole Show is a WWE YouTube web series starring commentators John Layfield and Michael Cole. Renee Young began co-hosting the World Tour segments, which is a segment detailing the city they are filming in, showcasing various tourist attractions, before later being promoted as a third main presenter.
The JBL and Cole Show
Born into a tight-knit wrestling family, Paige and her brother Zak are ecstatic when they get the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to try out for the WWE. But when only Paige earns a spot in the competitive training program, she must leave her loved ones behind and face this new cutthroat world alone. Paige's journey pushes her to dig deep and ultimately prove to the world that what makes her different is the very thing that can make her a star.