Downtown Bruno (Harvey Wippleman) says Young Rock will be back.
Young Rock aired on NBC for three seasons, but the show was canceled by the network in June. However, Downtown Bruno says that NBC’s move didn’t signal the end of the show.
Downtown Bruno (Bruno Lauer, aka Harvey Wippleman) has a close connection with The Rock, as Bruno helped him break into the wrestling business. Bruno was portrayed on the show by Ryan Pinkston, and he also serves as a technical advisor on the show.
Bruno recently spoke with Bryan Absury on Developmentally Speaking. He said that working on the show was a huge highlight for him. He added that the show might not be on NBC anymore, but fans should stay tuned to see where it ends up next.
“To me, the biggest highlight for the past however many years was being a main part of the Young Rock show on NBC. I was one of the two executive consultants for the wrestling aspect of the show. I was part of the Memphis wrestling consulting team. And I was also part of the Zoom meetings teaching Ryan Pinkston, the actor that plays me on Young Rock, my accent, helping him understand how I talk and behave and whatnot,” Bruno explained. “Being part of that, of course my friend Chavo Guerrero was the casting director for the wrestlers in the show, and the physical consultant for showing the actors how to take a bump.
“Me and Chavo were the two wrestling people on that particular show and that was a great, great experience. And it’s not over yet! It’s not on NBC no more,” Bruno said. “But once this actor’s strike resolves, stay tuned. Young Rock will be back, the story ain’t over yet.”
“No, I never made eggs on the toilet”
Downtown Bruno spoke with WrestleZone Managing Editor Bill Pritchard about his work on the show. When asked if he approves of the portrayal of him on Young Rock, Bruno admitted he was very happy with it. Bruno said that some liberties were taken since it was still a comedy show, but it’s still based in truth.
“Well, what’s funny is first of all, everybody asked me this. No, I never made eggs on the toilet. That never happened,” Downtown Bruno confirmed. “But I mean, it’s reality, but it’s fictionalized. You know what I mean? The stories are based on truth. But some of it, they made it [funny], because it’s not just a straight-up drama, but it’s certainly a comedy as well. But it’s like, I guess we say a dramedy. So, they have to make it funny. They couldn’t make it just 100% realistic or it wouldn’t have any comedy to it. Basically, the stories are on the true side, but fictionalized.”
“Now in season one, when Dwayne and a guy that [he] worked with at the pizza place bought him his first car from the bums. Well, the truth is — and Dwayne has said this in many interviews and many forums — that I bought him his first car in Nashville and from the bums. There was a bum in the backseat asleep that we didn’t even see him back there because it was such a ratty, trashy vehicle.
“However, just storyline-wise, they changed it. And him and the guy that he worked with at the pizza place bought him his first car, which wasn’t true. It was me and him together. But, I guess they thought it was more funny to do that. Plus, he was based in Philadelphia or Scranton or someplace like that at the time. I obviously wasn’t there, I was in Memphis. So, they had to switch that up. But the gist of the story was true, just the people involved wasn’t accurate.”
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