Natalie Eva Marie is one of the most captivating and controversial divas in WWE history. She has been a wrestler, a manager, a reality star, an actress, a model, and a fashion designer. She has also been known for her signature red hair and her fiery personality. This is the story of Natalie Eva Marie, the red-hot diva of WWE.
Early Life and Modeling Career
Natalie Eva Marie was born on September 19, 1984, in Walnut Creek, California, to a Mexican mother and an Italian father. She was the youngest of four children and grew up in Concord, California. She was athletic since childhood and played soccer for California State University, Fullerton. She also studied art and business management and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree.
Natalie Eva Marie started modeling as a way to make some money while studying. She appeared in several advertisements and infomercials and posed for magazines such as Rukus and Glamfit. She also participated in beauty pageants and won the 2012 Powertec Fashion Model Competition.
Natalie Eva Marie’s modeling career caught the attention of WWE scouts, who invited her to try out for the company in 2013. She impressed them with her looks, charisma, and athleticism and signed a contract with WWE. She was sent to the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, to train as a professional wrestler.
WWE Debut and Total Divas
Natalie Eva Marie made her WWE debut in July 2013 on Raw, where she introduced herself as Eva Marie and joined forces with The Bella Twins against AJ Lee and The Funkadactyls. She also dyed her hair red to stand out from the other divas and adopted the ring name Eva Marie.
Eva Marie also became one of the main cast members of Total Divas, a reality show that followed the lives of some of the WWE divas behind the scenes. She quickly became one of the most popular and polarizing stars of the show, as she revealed her personal struggles, relationships, ambitions, and controversies.
Eva Marie continued to appear on Raw and SmackDown as a manager or a wrestler, often teaming up with or against other Total Divas stars. She also had some memorable moments, such as slapping Jerry Lawler, kissing Brie Bella’s husband Daniel Bryan, faking an injury to avoid wrestling, and getting suspended for violating the wellness policy.
NXT Run and SmackDown Return
In mid-2015, Eva Marie decided to improve her wrestling skills by moving to NXT, WWE’s developmental brand. She trained with former WWE wrestler Brian Kendrick and debuted on NXT in August 2015, defeating Carmella. She then started a feud with Bayley, the NXT Women’s Champion at the time.
Eva Marie challenged Bayley for the title in November 2015, but failed to win despite having the referee on her side. She then formed an alliance with Nia Jax and continued to wrestle on NXT until April 2016, when she returned to the main roster.
Eva Marie became part of the SmackDown brand in July 2016, as part of the WWE draft. She debuted with a new gimmick, where she had an elaborate entrance with a voice-over that praised her attributes. However, she always found an excuse to avoid wrestling, such as wardrobe malfunctions, injuries, or traffic jams.
Eva Marie was supposed to compete in a six-woman tag team match at SummerSlam 2016, but she was suspended for 30 days for violating the wellness policy again. She never returned to WWE television after that and left the company in August 2017.
Other Projects and WWE Comeback
After leaving WWE, Eva Marie pursued other projects outside of wrestling. She made her film debut in Inconceivable (2017), starring alongside Nicolas Cage and Faye Dunaway. She also appeared in other movies such as Action #1 (2018), Hard Kill (2020), Paradise City (2021), and The Demonic Dead (2021).
Eva Marie also launched her own fashion line, NEM Fashion, in 2016. She designed and modeled various clothing items, such as dresses, swimsuits, activewear, and accessories. She also started a fitness program, NEM Fit, in 2018, where she shared her workouts, nutrition tips, and motivational messages. Eva Marie also appeared in several television shows, such as Celebrity Big Brother (2019), where she finished in third place, and Paradise City (2021), where she played a recurring role. She also hosted a podcast, The Natalie Eva Marie Show, from 2018 to 2019.
In late 2020, Eva Marie signed a new contract with WWE and returned to the promotion in June 2021 on the Raw brand. She debuted with a new partner, Doudrop, and competed in matches such as Money in the Bank and SummerSlam. However, she was released from WWE in November 2021, as part of a mass layoff.
Eva Marie is a remarkable woman who has achieved success in various fields, such as wrestling, acting, modeling, and fashion. She has also been a source of inspiration and empowerment for many women and fans. She is truly a red-hot diva of WWE.
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