Simone Johnson, known to WWE viewers as Ava, has reflected on the unexpected position she found herself in during one of the most volatile fan reactions of the WrestleMania 40 build.
The reaction was directed at the major creative shift surrounding Cody Rhodes, Roman Reigns, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in February 2024. But the backlash did not remain confined to the central storyline. As Rock’s daughter and a newly installed on-screen authority figure in WWE NXT, Simone said she became an unintended target of the frustration from fans who wanted Rhodes to finish his story against Reigns.
Speaking with Rhodes on What Do You Wanna Talk About, Simone looked back at the period immediately after the SmackDown segment in which Rhodes appeared to step aside, opening the door for Rock to challenge Reigns at WrestleMania 40. The proposed direction sparked a massive online response, with supporters of Rhodes voicing their displeasure and pushing hard for WWE to return to the Rhodes-Reigns match.
For Simone, the scale of that reaction became clear backstage at NXT Vengeance Day, held two days after the pivotal SmackDown appearance. The premium live event was set to become the first WWE programming to air following the segment, and she was preparing for her own on-camera duties when a member of the NXT creative staff approached her with a warning.
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Simone recalled being told not to be surprised if the NXT crowd booed when her pre-taped material played. She said she understood the reasoning at the time. Fans were angry about what they believed had happened to Rhodes’ WrestleMania opportunity, and her family connection to Rock made her a visible extension of a decision that had nothing to do with her own NXT role.
The warning proved accurate. The audience did boo Ava at Vengeance Day, mirroring the negative discussion that had already unfolded online. Simone described the experience as one that initially changed the way she viewed wrestling fans and the business as a whole. At the time, she said, it was a deeply negative experience.
An Unusual Moment for WWE NXT’s New General Manager
The timing made the situation particularly difficult. Less than two weeks before Vengeance Day, Simone had been introduced as the new on-screen General Manager of NXT. It was an important developmental step for her WWE character, placing her in a prominent authority role on the brand and giving her a regular presence during a major phase in NXT’s continued growth.
Instead of having that early stretch defined solely by the responsibilities of her new role, Ava was immediately tied in the minds of some fans to the WrestleMania controversy involving her father. The Vengeance Day reaction was not built around an NXT storyline, an in-ring rivalry, or a decision Ava had made on television. It came from the emotional spillover of WWE’s larger main-roster creative direction.
That distinction is central to Simone’s recollection. She was not describing ordinary heel heat generated by an angle. Rather, she was confronted by a crowd response rooted in an outside perception of her relationship to Rock and the booking change that had put Rhodes’ WrestleMania path in doubt.
For performers and on-screen personalities, crowd reactions are an essential part of professional wrestling. Cheers and boos can be useful tools when they reinforce a story being presented on television. This was different. Simone had to navigate an audience response that reflected a wider debate over WWE’s biggest event of the year, even while she was beginning a separate chapter as an NXT authority figure.
She said the reaction eventually pushed her toward a more confident approach to her work. After initially viewing the situation negatively, Simone came to see value in the lesson it provided. Outside opinions, she recognized, would always exist, particularly because of who she is and because of actions or decisions involving her father.
That realization led her to become more focused on her own journey. Simone characterized that mindset as becoming somewhat selfish about what she was doing, but viewed it as necessary. Rather than allowing the backlash to define her place in WWE, she used it to reinforce the importance of building her own identity and concentrating on the role in front of her.
The Cody Rhodes-WrestleMania 40 Pivot
The controversy that reached Ava at Vengeance Day began with the WrestleMania 40 main-event picture. Rhodes had long been associated with the goal of defeating Reigns and winning the championship that had eluded his family. After his Royal Rumble success, the expectation was that Rhodes would once again pursue Reigns on WWE’s grandest stage.
Then came the February 2024 SmackDown development in which Rhodes seemingly stepped away from that match and Rock was positioned opposite Reigns. The prospect of Rock facing Reigns carried obvious significance given their family connection and the scale of the potential attraction. Yet the immediate response from many fans was overwhelmingly in favor of Rhodes remaining in the title match.
That response quickly became one of the defining stories of the WrestleMania season. Fans made clear that they did not want Rhodes removed from the championship program after his lengthy pursuit of Reigns. The backlash was substantial enough that WWE’s creative direction changed course.
At the WrestleMania 40 press conference in Las Vegas, Rhodes confirmed that he would challenge Reigns after all. The confrontation put Rhodes back opposite “The Tribal Chief” and formally restored the match that fans had strongly demanded.
Rock did not disappear from the program after that pivot. Instead, he became a crucial part of the story in a different capacity. Rock turned heel and aligned himself with Reigns, adding another powerful layer to the conflict between Rhodes and The Bloodline. The change helped turn the initial controversy into an on-screen story, while keeping Rock heavily involved in the road to WrestleMania.
For Rhodes, the eventual direction gave him the opportunity he had been seeking. For WWE, the response demonstrated just how strongly fans had invested in his pursuit of Reigns. For Simone, however, the period also created a personal professional test at the very beginning of her tenure as NXT General Manager.
Finding Her Own Direction
Simone’s comments offer a reminder that wrestling’s biggest reactions can reach far beyond the talent directly involved in a storyline. Family associations have long played an important role in wrestling, and Rock’s connection to the legendary Anoa’i family was itself central to the Reigns story. But Simone’s experience showed the other side of that visibility: she could become a focal point for fan anger despite having no role in the WrestleMania creative decision.
Her eventual response was not to dismiss the reaction or pretend it had not affected her. Instead, she acknowledged that it changed her outlook before ultimately helping her develop more resilience. The episode made her more determined to define herself through her own work rather than through assumptions connected to her last name.
Ava went on to settle into the NXT General Manager position after the WrestleMania 40 season. The role allowed her to remain a consistent authority presence on the brand, with her early Vengeance Day experience becoming part of a much larger period in her WWE career.
Simone later departed NXT and WWE altogether in January 2026. Her recollection of the 2024 backlash now stands as a candid account of a uniquely difficult moment: a new on-screen role, a highly charged WrestleMania storyline, and an arena crowd reacting to a controversy that had rapidly spread throughout the wrestling world.
Ultimately, the Rhodes-Reigns story moved forward, Rock found a new place within the angle, and WrestleMania 40’s direction was reset. Simone’s experience did not change the course of that booking debate, but it clearly shaped how she viewed her own path. What began as an uncomfortable warning backstage at Vengeance Day became a lesson in separating external noise from personal purpose in an industry where reactions can be immediate, intense, and impossible to ignore.
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Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.