WWE Star Says He Watched His Uncle Die At 11 Years Old, Was ‘Locked Up & Shot At’

WWE

A WWE star has spoke about his difficult upbringing, revealing a tragic family incident he says he witnessed at only 11 years old.

Many WWE fans may only know SCRYPTS (formerly known as Reggie) for his circus performer background and previous ‘sommelier’ character – a major contrast from his current presentation as part of the OTM (Out The Mud) team with Lucien Price and Bronco Nima in NXT.

However, in a promo that aired during NXT Halloween Havoc Night Two, SCRYPTS stood alongside Nima and Price, delivering an impassioned promo on his childhood hardships, including the tragic circumstances surrounding the death of his uncle.

SCRYPTS said:

“You know, I shouldn’t have had faith that y’all was gonna understand me.

“You actually thought I was sipping wine all my life, or that my life was some travelling circus up and down the street doing cartwheels. That’s the life I played just to fit in for y’all.

“Yeah I’m Reggie, but back home in St Louis, they all called me Scrypts.

“See I’ve been locked up, shot at, I watched my uncle die in my bedroom when I was 11 years old but just like Bronco and Lucien we all cut from that same cloth.”

If you use this transcription or any portion of it please credit WrestleTalk.com and link to this page.

While SCRYPTS’ tough upbringing has never played a role in his WWE character until now, this is not the first time he has discussed his early traumas growing up in St Louis.

In a spotlight feature piece for Midnight Circus in 2017, SCRYPTS, real name Sidney Bateman, discussed his life prior to pursuing a career in the circus.

In the piece it was revealed that he had fallen into what he described as “bad stuff,” joining a gang at 16 and later losing his best friend to a shooting, which proved to be a catalyst to escape that life:

At 16, he joined a gang, the Crips from the 50 Hundred GST (Geraldine Street Thugs). He stopped performing with the St. Louis Arches. During his junior year in high school, Sidney had a wake-up call. He lost a good friend, shot by a member of a rival gang. It was on that day that Sidney remembers thinking, “One day I’m going to escape all this.”

“At 16 when I quit the circus, I thought I’d be nothing but a gang member limited to the few streets I was allowed to go to.”

To read the full story from Midnight Circus including more quotes from Bateman, click here.

The promo during NXT seemingly set up a match between OTM and the Brawling Brutes (Butch and Ridge Holland).

This comes after the Brutes eliminated OTM from the #1 contender battle royal a couple of weeks ago.

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