Netflix
Bill Simmons was one of the many notable names in attendance when Monday Night Raw made its Netflix debut after heading to Los Angeles to usher in the new year. He ended up sitting next to a WWE legend in the form of Nikki Bella and went viral thanks to the lose-lose situation he found himself facing when she pulled out her signature entrance move.
Last summer, the WWE announced it had inked a deal with Netflix to make the streaming platform the new and exclusive home of Raw. There was little doubt the two parties were going to pull out all of the stops when they ushered in a new era at the Intuit Dome on Monday night, and that was certainly the case.
More than 17,000 fans were packed inside the arena to watch a show that featured appearances from pro wrestling legends including Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, John Cena, and a soundly-booed Hulk Hogan, and the stands were overflowing with the many celebrities who made the trek to Inglewood for the highly-anticipated event.
That includes Bill Simmons, who ended up sitting ringside behind the announcer’s table with his son Ben. The duo ended up rubbing shoulders with some other notable names, including Saturday Night Live‘s Michael Che (who was sitting in the row behind them) and former WWE superstar Nikki Bella.
Nikki spent 15 years with the promotion wrestling alongside her twin sister Brie, and if you’re familiar with her career, you’re likely aware she kicked off basically every entrance with the booty twirl she pulled out before making her way down the ramp toward the ring.
It was only natural she’d deploy that suggestive move when the broadcast cut to her to highlight her presence while she was standing right next to Simmons, and many viewers couldn’t help but notice he did everything in his power to avoid ending up at the center of a viral moment by lingering on her for too long.
Unfortunately, the clip still ended up making the rounds online due to just how hard he wasn’t looking at Bella as her hips gyrated just a few feet from his face.
“She passes the eye test, she just does! You could really notice it in person” pic.twitter.com/brb6o9RsGw
— The r/BillSimmons Podcast (@rBillSimmonsPod) January 7, 2025
“A” for effort, Bill.