Eva Marie revisited one of the most talked-about segments of her WWE run during an appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, discussing her infamous 2016 “wardrobe malfunction” angle with Becky Lynch.
The moment took place on the August 9, 2016 edition of SmackDown Live and was part of an ongoing storyline in which Eva Marie’s character repeatedly found creative excuses to avoid wrestling. Over time, those excuses ranged from heavy traffic delays to a fake knee injury — and ultimately, a wardrobe malfunction before a scheduled match.
“So that whole kind of storyline was fun. There’s always going to be an excuse for me not to get in the ring. Once I got stuck in traffic. The other one, I hurt my knee, and then the wardrobe malfunction. I can’t remember who exactly thought of that idea, but it was pitched to me. I’m obviously easy, I really am, especially because I’m a heel as is, so I have removed really quickly being the babyface or being the one that doesn’t look silly,” Eva Marie explained.
She acknowledged that not every performer is comfortable being portrayed as the “butt of the joke,” but said she embraced the role and the crowd reaction that came with it — including signs from fans threatening to riot if she appeared.
The wardrobe malfunction segment required particular care due to the risks of live television. Eva detailed how carefully the spot had to be rehearsed to avoid any actual exposure.
“The wardrobe one was gnarly, because it’s live television, so to make it realistic, we had to do a run through with it, because the last thing that we needed was me actually dropping my top. So cameramen were paranoid, freaking out, so I was securely taped, but it came off pretty good. The way that I’m holding it looks like, oh my god, it’s really happening, yeah, but I’m taped up, so if I literally, like, let my hands go, it’s just flapping. It basically just clips off, and it just falls forward. And how it kind of came off on TV looked great. How it just really did look like this is happening, like her top is literally falling off, and Becky played off it great. And I’m having a heart attack, telling them to get me a towel. It was just a mess. And that’s the type of stuff that gets, um, well, I don’t know, should we be concerned with the WWE Universe, 47 million views. I mean, do we have a bunch of perverts or what? That’s crazy!”
The segment went on to accumulate 47 million views on WWE’s YouTube channel, becoming one of the most viral clips of her career.
Eva’s 2016 run ultimately ended abruptly due to a Wellness Policy suspension, which resulted in her removal from the SummerSlam card and replacement by Nikki Bella. She departed WWE in 2017 before returning for a second stint in 2021.
