All Renee Paquette ever wanted was to be a comedic TV host, like Chelsea Handler, Ellen DeGeneres or Jimmy Fallon. While her career hasn’t gone exactly as planned, the Canadian now known as Renee Young has quite a growing small-screen resume, nonetheless.
Young is arguably WWE’s top reporter and the host of “SmackDown Live’s” after-show, “Talking Smack.” And this season, she’ll debut as one of three new cast members on spinoff reality series “Total Divas.”
Joining her on the E! show are Lana and Maryse, who are married to WWE Superstars Rusev and The Miz, respectively. While Young is legally single, she’s in a high-profile pro wrestling relationship of her own, dating fan-favorite Dean Ambrose.
That’s a love viewers will see blossom on the unscripted cable series.
“He’s on there, we’re on there together,” Young told TheWrap. “He’s not on there as much as some of the other men.”
That’s because Ambrose was the WWE Champion during filming, which made him the company’s defacto face. Though he eventually lost the title to A.J. Styles, Ambrose has a reputation for being WWE’s in-ring workhorse, which keeps his schedule pretty jam-packed.
While the Bella Twins are still the main cast members on the now-nine-member “Total Divas” (and obviously for its spinoff, “Total Bellas”) Young promised the fresh blood will bring “new drama” and “new action.”
“It’s gonna be so much fun,” she said. “Hopefully I get to stay [for next season].”
We couldn’t possibly let Young go without asking her about Sunday’s “Survivor Series,” which is one of the WWE’s Big 4 pay-per-view events of the year. This one has something a little extra going for it, as grappling legend Goldberg will return from retirement to wrestle scariest-human-alive Brock Lesnar.
“It’s gonna be insane,” Young said of the first time the “Raw” and “SmackDown Live” rosters will come together since their July brand split.
And by the way, she agrees with our classification of the part-time pro wrestler/part-time mixed martial artist’s presence.
“Brock Lesnar is the most terrifying man in the entire world. I see him in the hallways and I say, ‘Hey sir, how are you?’” she said. “And then I, like, scoot away as fast as possible.”
That doesn’t mean Young thinks it’s a lock that Lesnar will defeat Goldberg, evening their career rivalry at 1-1.
“I think there’s something to be said about older-man strength,” she said of the 49-year-old underdog’s chances. “Goldberg: he’s no dummy … he’s going to be ring ready — there’s no question about that.”
“It’s gonna get nasty,” Young concluded.
See how nasty it all gets this Sunday on the WWE Network, beginning at 7/6c. And before that, watch the Season 6 premiere of “Total Divas” Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET on E!