Finn Balor Joins SmackDown Live as Part of the Superstar Shake-up

For the first time in his career, Finn Balor is a member of the Blue Brand. The reigning Intercontinental Champion joined SmackDown Live as part of Tuesday night’s Superstar Shake-up, bringing the prestigious IC title with him.

The move comes fresh off the reports from Tuesday morning that United States Champion Samoa Joe was supposed to appear on Monday Night Raw the night prior to signify that the US title was moving shows. But due to illness, his segment was scrapped. Balor appeared on Raw, but wound up losing a non-title match against Andrade.

Balor was just the first of many superstars to make the jump to Tuesday night’s this week. Other new additions to the roster included Roman Reigns, Elias, Bayley, Ember Moon, Kairi Sane, Lars Sullivan, Buddy Murphy, Liv Morgan, Chad Gable, Apollo Crews and Mickie James.

The former Universal Champion won back the Intercontinental Championship for the second time at WrestleMania 35, making quick work of Bobby Lashley while appearing as “The Demon.” Balor admitted in an interview back in December that using his painted alter-ego has become more and more difficult in recent years.

“I do it so infrequently now that I forget how I move as the Demon,” Balor said on an episode of the Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast. “I forget the subtle differences in the entrance and the mannerisms of how the Demon works. Now, when I go out there, I’m Finn Balor, but that’s just Fergal. It’s just me, the human. But when the Demon goes out there, I need to transform into a different person. That mindset, because I’m not tapping into it so often, that’s a huge challenge for me. I gotta figure out how to do that every time, again. I’m very comfortable being Finn, but when it comes to the Demon, I have to re-educate myself. That’s an added challenge because of how infrequent we are doing it.”

—–

Have you subscribed to ComicBook Nation, the official Podcast of ComicBook.com yet? Check it out by clicking here or listen below.

In this latest episode, we cover the possible new Hawkeye series coming to Disney +, argue if Batman casting fatigue is setting in, we grade WWE Wrestlemania, and so much more! Make sure to subscribe now and never miss an episode!