It was during an episode of The Real World that Mizanin first displayed an alter ego known as The Miz.[2] In contrast to Mizanin's usually placid demeanor, The Miz was angry, combative and headstrong. Mizanin later realized that The Miz would make an excellent
professional wrestlinggimmick.[2]
In 2004, he appeared on the
Bravo reality show Battle of the Network Reality Stars,[12][18] in which his team finished second. Mizanin was also a contestant in the "Reality Stars" episode of Fear Factor.[12][19] His partner was his former girlfriend and castmate,
Trishelle Cannatella, and the two won the competition. In April 2007, he appeared on the game show Identity, where he appeared as a stranger, and contestant John Kim correctly identified his identity as a
professional wrestler by the odd way he added "Miz-" before most words.[20] On October 5, 2011, Miz starred in an episode of H8R.
Return to MTV
After a seven-year-long absence from The Challenge, Mizanin returned to the reality show on April 4, 2012, as the host of The Battle of the Exes season finale event and reunion special. It marked the first time The Miz appeared on the series since becoming a main-event WWE Superstar.[21] Since then, he had become a mainstay reunion host as well as the host of The Challenge: Champs vs. Stars mini-series.
USA Network
In 2018, Mizanin and his wife Maryse began starring in a
USA Network reality television series titled Miz & Mrs..[22] In 2020, he starred on a second show on USA, serving as host of the reality game show Cannonball.
Other television appearances
In 2008, Mizanin appeared on the
Sci Fi reality series Ghost Hunters Live as a guest investigator.[23] In 2009, Mizanin appeared on two episodes of Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?, which were both aired on September 29.[24][25] He appeared on an episode of Destroy Build Destroy on March 3, 2010.[26] He also appeared as a guest star in a March 2012 episode of Psych. On March 31, Mizanin appeared in the first ever Slime Wrestling World Championship at the
Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, losing to
Big Show and therefore being thrown into a tub of slime. In 2012, Mizanin appeared on the
Disney XD show Pair of Kings as a guest star. In 2013, Miz along with
Francia Raisa, were in a movie together called Christmas Bounty.
On May 1, 2023, Mizanan appeared as part of a team with
Alexa Bliss[29] on the American show That's My Jam on
NBC hosted by
Jimmy Fallon. They won the final round, therefore the game and the monies were donated to children's charities.
Professional wrestling career
Ultimate Pro Wrestling (2003–2004)
Pursuing the goal of becoming a professional wrestler, Mizanin joined
Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW), where he trained in the Ultimate University.[2] He made his in-ring debut in 2003 as The Miz.[2] During his time with UPW, The Miz competed in UPW's Mat War's tournament, making it to the finals before losing to
Tony Stradlin.[2]
World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE (2004–present)
Tough Enough and developmental territories (2004–2006)
In October 2004, Mike Mizanin entered the fourth season of Tough Enough, a televised competition which awarded the winner a
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) contract and US$1,000,000.[2][30] Despite coming last in an
arm wrestling tournament on November 25, Mizanin outlasted six other wrestlers and reached the final round.[31] At
Armageddon on December 12, Mizanin faced the other remaining entrant,
Daniel Puder, in a three-round "Dixie Dogfight" (
boxing match). Neither man achieved a
knockout, and the contest was awarded to Puder on the basis of crowd reaction.[32] On the December 16 episode of SmackDown!, Puder was declared as the winner of Tough Enough by head trainer
Al Snow.[33] Despite coming up short on Tough Enough, Mizanin had piqued the interest of WWE and he was eventually offered a developmental contract.[2]
Mizanin was sent to
Deep South Wrestling (DSW) to train under
Bill DeMott,[2] relocating to
McDonough, Georgia in the process. In July 2005, he wrestled two
dark matches for WWE,
teaming with former Tough Enough champion
Matt Cappotelli to face
The Highlanders (Robbie and Rory McAllister). On December 1, Mizanin defeated
Mike Knox in the finals of a tournament to determine the inaugural
Deep South Heavyweight Champion.[2] He continued his partnership with Matt Cappotelli throughout the second half of 2005 in WWE dark matches and house shows until Cappotelli, nominally of
Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), was diagnosed with a brain tumor after an injury at a taping in December 2005.[34] After Cappotelli's death from
brain cancer in June 2018, Miz revealed they were to be called up to the SmackDown roster as a tag team known as Reality Check in 2005, but these plans were halted due to Cappotelli's cancer diagnosis.[35]
On January 3, 2006, it was reported that Mizanin had been transferred to OVW. On the January 18, 2006 OVW TV show, Mizanin made his debut as Miz with a Miz TV segment, where he was shown talking backstage.[2] On the January 28 episode of the OVW television show, The Miz wrestled his first singles match against
René Duprée, but lost by
countout.[36]
From March 7 onwards, a video on WWE's website and
vignettes on SmackDown! heralded The Miz debuting on the
SmackDown! brand.[2][39] When Mizanin actually attempted to make his debut on the April 21 episode of SmackDown!, he was in
storyline banned from entering the arena by network executive
Palmer Canon who told him that he had been "cancelled" before having security escort him from the premises.[40]
The Miz debuted as the host of SmackDown! on June 2,[41] hyping up the crowd at the top of the show. Other duties included backstage interviews and hosting a bikini contest. Starting in July, Miz, along with
Ashley Massaro, hosted the annual
Diva Search competition.[42][43][44]
After the end of the Diva Search competition, The Miz began wrestling as a
villain, making his in-ring debut with a win over
Tatanka on the September 1 episode of SmackDown!.[45] Over the next three months, The Miz remained undefeated, defeating such wrestlers as
Matt Hardy,[46]Funaki[47] and
Scotty 2 Hotty.[48] At the same time, he began a
feud with Diva Search winner
Layla El, who spurned his advances on more than one occasion,[49][50] leading to Miz helping
Kristal defeat her in various competitions.[51][52] However, Miz and Kristal soon found themselves being stalked by
The Boogeyman. This began a feud in which the Boogeyman ended The Miz's winning streak on December 17 at
Armageddon.[53]
At
Royal Rumble on January 28, 2007, The Miz entered in the
Royal Rumble match as the 29th entrant, but only lasted seven seconds before being eliminated by
The Great Khali.[54] On the February 2 episode of SmackDown, Miz defeated Matt Hardy once again with assistance from
Joey Mercury. Following a brief absence from television, The Miz returned on the March 9 episode of SmackDown! to host an interview segment named Miz TV.[55] After the unsuccessful segment, The Miz returned to in-ring competition with a more intense style and began to pick up wins once again.[56][57]
Miz was drafted to the
ECW brand on June 17 as part of the
2007 supplemental draft.[58] He was absent from the first few weeks of ECW, though he was the subject of backstage mentions between matches and had several short Miz TV Crashes ECW video segments.[59][60] He made his debut on the July 10 episode of ECW in a match against
Nunzio, which he won.[61]
Soon after, The Miz found new managers in
Kelly Kelly, Layla El and
Brooke Adams.[62] He then began a feud with
Balls Mahoney after Kelly Kelly began to fall in love with Mahoney on screen.[63][64][65] On the October 2 episode of ECW, it was revealed that Miz owned the contracts of
Kelly Kelly, Layla and
Brooke Adams; and he used this excuse to stop Kelly from going out with Mahoney.[66] He was nominated at
Cyber Sunday on October 28 to face
CM Punk for the
ECW Championship. He won the vote, but lost the match.[67] Later that month, he formed a tag team with
Johnny Nitro.
On January 27, 2008, Miz competed in the
Royal Rumble match at the
Royal Rumble event, entering at number 16 and lasting over 13 minutes, before being eliminated by
Hornswoggle, who spent most of the match hiding under the ring. In February, Miz and Morrison were given a
streaming segment on the WWE website named The Dirt Sheet in which they mocked other wrestlers and facets of pop culture, showing off their
promo skills.[70] Morrison and The Miz co-wrote each episode of The Dirt Sheet each week.[71] Miz competed in a battle royal on the pre-show of
WrestleMania XXIV on March 30 but was unsuccessful in winning after being eliminated by
Jamie Noble. Miz and Morrison successfully retained the titles against
Kane and CM Punk at
Judgment Day on May 18[72] and
Finlay and Hornswoggle at
Night of Champions on June 29,[73] before
dropping the championship to
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder at the
Great American Bash on July 20 in a
fatal four-way match which also involved
Jesse and Festus, ending their reign at 250 days.[74] Neither Miz nor Morrison were pinned as Hawkins pinned Jesse to win the titles.[74] Miz competed in the
Championship Scramble for the ECW Championship on September 7 at
Unforgiven, which was won by Matt Hardy. Miz and Morrison soon followed a feud with
Cryme Tyme (
Shad Gaspard and
JTG) as a battle of their webshows, Word Up and The Dirt Sheet. They were voted into a match with, and defeated Cryme Tyme on October 26 at
Cyber Sunday.[75] The team also feuded with
D-Generation X (
Triple H and
Shawn Michaels).[76][77] On the
800th episode of Raw, Miz and Morrison competed in a match against DX, and were defeated.[77] The duo would join
John "Bradshaw" Layfield's team (which also included Kane and Montel Vontavious Porter) in a losing effort against
Shawn Michaels' team (also including Shad Gaspard, JTG,
Rey Mysterio and
The Great Khali) at
Survivor Series on November 23. Miz would then enter a
tournament to determine the number one contender for
William Regal's
Intercontinental Championship, but lost to Mysterio in the first round on the December 1 episode of Raw. On December 13, Miz and Morrison defeated
Kofi Kingston and CM Punk to win the
World Tag Team Championship during a WWE
house show in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.[78]
At
Royal Rumble on January 25, 2009, Miz entered the
Royal Rumble match at number 13, but only lasted 1 minute and 21 seconds, before being eliminated by Triple H. In February, the team engaged themselves in a feud with
The Colóns (
Carlito and
Primo). In a dark match at
WrestleMania 25 on April 5, they lost the World Tag Team Championship to The Colóns in a
lumberjack match to unify the World Tag Team and the WWE Tag Team titles.[79] On the April 13 episode of Raw, The Miz lost a match to Kofi Kingston due to Morrison accidentally getting Miz disqualified, which gave the
Rawbrand a draft pick in the
2009 WWE draft. The pick was then revealed to be The Miz and retaliated by subsequently attacking Morrison, ending their partnership and thus turning John Morrison into a
fan favorite.[80]
Miz challenged
John Cena to a match on the April 27 episode of Raw, but as Cena was out due to injury, Miz claimed an unofficial win via forfeit and continued to do this over the following weeks, until Cena returned and defeated him in a singles match at
The Bash in June.[81] It would also be around this time where he would develop his new finisher, the
Skull-Crushing Finale, and catchphrase: "Because I'm The Miz... and I'm awesome!" On the August 3 episode of Raw, The Miz lost to Cena in a lumberjack match, which meant that, in storyline, he was banned from the
Staples Center, the
Raw brand and
SummerSlam.[82] The following week on August 10, Miz competed under a
mask as The Calgary Kid and won a
Contract on Pole match against
Eugene, earning a contract in storyline, and revealing himself by removing his mask afterwards.[83]
During this time, he gained a new entrance theme "I Came to Play", performed by the band Downstait. The Miz soon began a rivalry with
MVP that began with a critically well-received verbal exchange between the two.[92] The two met in an unadvertised match for the United States Championship at the
Royal Rumble on January 31, 2010, with Miz retaining his title, but in the Royal Rumble match itself MVP eliminated both himself and The Miz.[93] Also around this time, Miz formed a tag team with
Big Show — later dubbed "
ShoMiz" — and on the February 8 episode of Raw the two defeated
D-Generation X (
Shawn Michaels and
Triple H) and
The Straight Edge Society (
CM Punk and
Luke Gallows) to become the
Unified Tag Team Champions, making Miz the first wrestler in WWE history to hold three championships at the same time (United States, World Tag Team and WWE Tag Team Championships).[94] At
Elimination Chamber on February 21, Miz again successfully defended his United States Championship against MVP after interference from Big Show, ending their feud.[95] At
WrestleMania XXVI on March 28, ShoMiz defeated John Morrison and
R-Truth to retain the title again.[96] At
Extreme Rules on April 25, ShoMiz would take part in a tag team
gauntlet match, and would make it to the final two teams, but were eliminated by
The Hart Dynasty (
David Hart Smith and
Tyson Kidd). The next night on Raw, ShoMiz lost the Unified Tag Team Championship to The Hart Dynasty, resulting in Big Show turning
face by attacking Miz after the match, bringing an end to the team.[97]
On the May 17 episode of Raw, Miz lost the United States Championship to
Bret Hart, despite
Chris Jericho,
William Regal and
Vladimir Kozlov all attempting to interfere on The Miz's behalf, ending his seven-month reign as champion.[98] At
Over the Limit on May 23, Miz and Jericho challenged The Hart Dynasty for the Unified Tag Team Championship, but lost.[99] On the June 14 episode of Raw, The Miz defeated R-Truth, John Morrison and
Zack Ryder in a fatal four-way match to win back the United States Championship for the second time.[100][101] He retained the championship against R-Truth on June 20 at the
Fatal 4-Way pay-per-view.[102]
On the November 22 episode of Raw, he cashed in his Money in the Bank contract following a successful WWE Championship defense by
Randy Orton against
Wade Barrett to become the new WWE Champion. The following week, Miz made his first successful title defense, defeating
Jerry "The King" Lawler in a
Tables, Ladders and Chairs match after interference from
Michael Cole.[110][111] He successfully defended the championship at the
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view on December 19 by defeating Orton in a
tables match following interference from
Alex Riley.[112] Miz retained the championship against John Morrison on the January 3, 2011 episode of Raw, Orton again at
Royal Rumble on January 30, (after interference from CM Punk) and Lawler on February 20 at
Elimination Chamber.[113][114] On the Raw after Elimination Chamber, The Miz and
John Cena were paired together by the
Anonymous Raw General Manager to challenge
The Corre (
Justin Gabriel and
Heath Slater) for the WWE Tag Team Championship. The Miz and Cena were successful in winning the titles, but lost them back to Corre immediately afterward in a rematch after The Miz turned on Cena.[115] This made their
9-minute reign the shortest in the championship's history.[116] The following week, The Miz lost Riley as his apprentice after Cena defeated Riley in a
steel cage match with the stipulation that if Cena won, Riley was fired from his job. However, Riley would be re-hired in mid-March, this time as Miz's "Vice President of Corporate Communications".[117][118] In the main event of
WrestleMania XXVII on April 3, The Miz successfully defended the WWE Championship against Cena, following interference from
The Rock, who then attacked Miz afterwards.[119]
At
Extreme Rules on May 1, The Miz lost the WWE Championship to Cena in a triple threat steel cage match, also involving John Morrison, ending his reign at 160 days.[120] He had rematches against Cena for the WWE Championship on the May 2 episode of Raw, and in an
"I Quit" match at
Over the Limit on May 22, but failed to regain the title.[121] The following night on Raw, the Anonymous Raw General Manager denied The Miz's request for another WWE Championship match; Miz blamed Riley for being unable to regain the championship. Riley then attacked him, turning Riley into a
fan favorite.[122] At
Capitol Punishment on June 19, Miz lost to Riley.[123] The Miz also failed to win Raw's Money in the Bank ladder match at the
titular event on July 17.[124] After the WWE Championship was declared vacant by
Vince McMahon, Miz would enter into a
tournament to crown a new champion, defeating Riley and Kofi Kingston to advance to the finals,[125] where he lost to Rey Mysterio.[126] At
SummerSlam on August 14, Miz, R-Truth, and Alberto Del Rio lost to Mysterio, Kingston and Morrison.[127]
On the August 22 episode of Raw, Miz and
R-Truth attacked
Santino Marella before his match. They then cut a promo agreeing there was a conspiracy in the WWE keeping both of them out of the main event picture, and declared they would, together, seize any future opportunity.[128] They began referring to themselves as "The Awesome Truth".[129] At
Night of Champions on September 18, after the referee was distracted while The Miz attempted a pin, Miz assaulted him, causing Awesome Truth to lose a
WWE Tag Team Championship match to Air Boom (
Kofi Kingston and
Evan Bourne) by disqualification.[130] Seeking retribution, Miz and Truth later attacked both
Triple H and
CM Punk during their
No Disqualification match in the main event.[131] Because of their actions from the previous night, R-Truth and The Miz were fired by Triple H on the September 19 episode of Raw. After this, Miz and R-Truth attacked Triple H, but were thrown out of the building.[132][133] At the conclusion of the main event match on October 2 at
Hell in a Cell, R-Truth and The Miz jumped the barricade wearing black hooded sweatshirts and entered the cell as it was being raised. They then used weapons to attack
Alberto Del Rio, Punk,
John Cena, the WWE officials and camera men while the cell was again lowered. After this, the entire WWE roster led by Triple H came out to find a way into the cell, before
New Orleans Police Department officers were able to get the door open and arrest them. The two later posted a video on
YouTube apologizing to the fans for their actions.[134] The Miz and R-Truth were reinstated by
John Laurinaitis on the October 10 episode of Raw. At
Vengeance on October 23, Miz and R-Truth defeated CM Punk and Triple H after interference from Triple H's long time friend
Kevin Nash. Later that night they assaulted John Cena during his
WWE Championship match with Alberto Del Rio.[135] At
Survivor Series on November 20, The Awesome Truth lost to Cena and
The Rock.[136] On the November 21 episode of Raw, Cena instigated an argument between R-Truth and Miz, which resulted in Miz performing a Skull Crushing Finale on the stage on R-Truth.[137] This was a pretext to explain R-Truth's absence during his suspension as a result of his violating of the Wellness Policy.[138]
On the November 28 episode of Raw, Miz defeated
John Morrison in a Falls Count Anywhere match after a Skull Crushing Finale on the stage.[139] On the December 5 episode of Raw, Miz qualified for a triple threat Tables, Ladders and Chairs match against Alberto Del Rio and CM Punk at the
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs pay-per-view for the WWE Championship on December 18 after a win over
Randy Orton via countout, but Punk would retain the title.[140][141] Miz would be the first entrant in the
2012 Royal Rumble match on January 29, eliminating
Alex Riley and R-Truth and lasting over 45 minutes before he was eliminated by
Big Show.[142] At
Elimination Chamber on February 19, Miz competed for the WWE Championship in the
titular match, and would last until the end of the match before being eliminated by CM Punk.[143]
Desperate for a spot on the card for the upcoming
WrestleMania XXVIII event on April 1,[144] he later joined John Laurinaitis' team for the
12-man tag team match after saving Laurinaitis from Santino Marella.[145][146] Miz picked up the win for Team Johnny after pinning
Zack Ryder with the help of
Eve, ending his twenty-match losing streak dating back to December 2011.[147] At the
Extreme Rulespre-show on April 29, The Miz lost a
United States Championship match against Santino Marella. He followed this up by losing a battle royal and a match against
Brodus Clay on May 20 at
Over the Limit.[148]
Miz next sought Wade Barrett's Intercontinental Championship.[165] He lost a triple threat match against Barrett and
Chris Jericho on the March 18 episode of Raw,[166] but defeated Barrett in a non-title match the following week to earn another shot at the title.[167] He captured the title by defeating Barrett at the
WrestleMania 29 pre-show on April 7,[168] only to lose the title back to him the following night on Raw.[169] Miz was victorious against Cody Rhodes in the
Extreme Rules pre-show. Miz failed to recapture the Intercontinental title on June 16 at
Payback[170] and
Money in the Bank on July 14.[171]
After a two-month hiatus filming The Marine 4: Moving Target, The Miz returned on the June 30 episode of Raw as a
heel, for the first time since 2012, and immediately began to insult the crowd and taking on the
gimmick of a movie star. At
Battleground on July 20, Miz won a
battle royal by lastly eliminating
Dolph Ziggler to win the
Intercontinental Championship for the third time.[181] At
SummerSlam on August 17, Ziggler defeated Miz to recapture the title.[182] Later that month,
Damien Sandow began appearing with Miz as his "stunt double" (mimicking all of Miz's moves and mannerisms) and was subsequently billed as Damien Mizdow.[183] At
Night of Champions on September 21, Miz defeated Ziggler to regain the Intercontinental Championship, only to lose the title to Ziggler in a rematch the following night.[184] After defeating
Sheamus several times with the help of Mizdow, Miz challenged him for the
United States Championship at
Hell in a Cell on October 26, but he was unsuccessful.[185]
At
Survivor Series on November 23, Miz and Mizdow won the
WWE Tag Team Championship by winning a fatal four-way match against defending champions
Gold and Stardust,
The Usos and
Los Matadores.[186] At
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 14, Miz and Mizdow lost by disqualification against The Usos after Miz hit Jimmy Uso with a
Slammy Award, resulting in the pair retaining the titles.[187] On the December 29 episode of Raw, Miz and Mizdow lost the titles to The Usos.[188] Miz and Mizdow were unsuccessful in regaining the championships at the
Royal Rumble on January 25, 2015. Miz was the first entrant in the
Royal Rumble match later that night but was eliminated by
Bubba Ray Dudley, in just four minutes.[189] After Mizdow began to get more attention from the audience, Miz relegated Mizdow to his personal assistant out of spite.[190] Miz and Mizdow then competed in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at
WrestleMania 31 on March 29, which Miz failed to win after being eliminated by Mizdow, dissolving their partnership.[191] On the April 20 episode of Raw, Miz defeated Mizdow in a match where the winner retained the Miz brand, with help from
Summer Rae.[192]
On the Raw episode post-WrestleMania 32, Miz won the
Intercontinental Championship for the fifth time, after his wife
Maryse made her return to WWE and distracted
Zack Ryder by slapping his father, thus becoming his
manager in the process, where the two then became an
on-screenpower couple.[197] In the weeks following, Miz and Maryse then began to cut various
promos during the Miz TV segments, while calling themselves the "it" couple.[198][199][200] At
Payback on May 1, Miz defeated
Cesaro to retain his championship after Cesaro was distracted by
Kevin Owens and
Sami Zayn brawling on the apron, leading to a feud over the Intercontinental Championship between the four men.[201] At
Extreme Rules on May 22, Miz successfully retained the championship against Cesaro, Zayn and Owens in a highly acclaimed fatal four-way match, when Miz pinned Cesaro.[202] The following night on Raw, Miz failed to qualify for the
2016Money in the Bank ladder match when he was defeated by Cesaro,[203] setting up another championship match between the two set for the week's SmackDown, which Miz won.[204] Following this, he and Maryse began filming The Marine 5: Battleground, taking them out of action. Both returned on the June 27 episode of Raw, where he lost to
Kane in a championship match via countout.[205] At
Battleground on July 24, the Intercontinental Championship match between Miz and
Darren Young ended in a double disqualification after The Miz pushed
Bob Backlund (Darren Young's mentor) and Young attacked him.[206] On July 19 at the
2016 WWE draft, Miz, along with Maryse was drafted to the
SmackDownbrand, with the Intercontinental Championship becoming exclusive to that brand.[207] At
SummerSlam on August 21, Miz successfully defended the championship against
Apollo Crews.[208]
As soon as she got hired, it gave me a whole new confidence in everything -- in my ability to do promos, in my ability to be in the ring..." [...] When your wife is sitting there watching you ringside, you are kind of showing off, and you don't want to look stupid -- ever. [...] I'm not in one of those relationships where I'm like, "Ugh, I'm with her all the time, and it sucks" [...] I'm like, "This is what I want." I want to be around her all the time because she's my best friend, and we talk about everything. It brings a whole new light to my life. To be away from her kind of puts you in a down mood.
On the August 23 episode of Talking Smack, The Miz went on a critically acclaimed
tirade against SmackDown General Manager
Daniel Bryan for calling him a coward, with Miz calling Bryan a "coward" for not returning to the ring when he promised the fans he would, before telling him to "go back to the bingo halls with your indie friends".[210] Miz would then restart his feud with
Dolph Ziggler, successfully defending the Intercontinental Championship against him at
Backlash on September 11, after Maryse sprayed an unknown substance at Ziggler while the referee was distracted.[211] Afterwards, The Miz continued to blame Bryan and vowed not to defend his Intercontinental Championship on any show until he was granted a contract "renegotiation".[212] At
No Mercy on October 9, Miz lost the Intercontinental Championship to Ziggler in a
title vs career match after Maryse and
The Spirit Squad (
Kenny and
Mikey), were ejected from ringside, ending Miz's reign at 188 days.[213]
On the
900th episode of SmackDown on November 15, Maryse helped Miz to win the championship for the sixth time.[214] Miz successfully defended the title against Raw's Sami Zayn at
Survivor Series on November 20, after Maryse prematurely rang the bell, causing a distraction.[215] Miz faced Ziggler once more in a
ladder match at
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 4, which Miz won to end their feud.[216]
On December 6 episode of SmackDown, Miz successfully defended the title against
Dean Ambrose after interference from Maryse and distraction from
James Ellsworth.[217] Two weeks later on SmackDown, Miz successfully defended the championship against Apollo Crews. After the match, Miz was interviewed by
Renee Young, where Miz sarcastically responded by revealing Young and Ambrose's
real life relationship, prompting her to slap Miz.[218][219] On the January 3, 2017 episode of SmackDown, Miz lost the Intercontinental Championship to Ambrose despite interference from Maryse.[220] On January 29, Miz entered the
2017 Royal Rumble match at number 15 and lasted 32 minutes until he was eliminated by
The Undertaker.[221]
On January 31 episode of SmackDown, Miz was revealed as one of the participants of the
Elimination Chamber match for the
WWE Championship[222] which took place on February 12, where Miz would eliminate Dean Ambrose, but was eliminated by
John Cena.[223] On the February 21 episode of SmackDown, Miz participated in a ten-man battle royal to determine the challenger for the
Bray Wyatt's WWE Championship, but was eliminated by Cena. After he was eliminated, he returned to the match to eliminate Cena. On the February 28 episode of SmackDown, Miz and Maryse made a special edition of Miz TV to critique Cena's powers on the backstage environment before Maryse slapped Cena and
Nikki Bella—Cena's girlfriend—came to save him.[224] On the March 14 episode of SmackDown, after a showdown between Miz and Maryse against Cena and Nikki, SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan scheduled a
mixed tag team match at
WrestleMania 33 on April 2, which Miz and Maryse lost.[225]
On April 10, Miz was drafted to the
Raw brand along with Maryse as part of the
Superstar Shake Up, where they made their debut on the same night dressed as Cena and Nikki, before being confronted by the Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose, who was also drafted to Raw in the Superstar Shake-up.[226] At
Extreme Rules on June 4, Miz defeated Ambrose to win the Intercontinental Championship for the seventh time.[227]
On the June 19 episode of Raw, Miz allied himself with
Bo Dallas and
Curtis Axel, a team which would later be dubbed "The Miztourage".[228] Miz successfully defended the Intercontinental Championship against Dean Ambrose at
Great Balls of Fire on July 9, due to interference from the Miztourage.[229] At the
SummerSlam pre-show on August 20, Miz and The Miztourage defeated
Jason Jordan and
The Hardy Boyz (
Jeff Hardy and
Matt Hardy) in a six-man tag-team match.[230] In September, Miz began a feud with Jordan after he was declared number one contender to Miz's championship.[231] At
No Mercy on September 25, Miz successfully retained the championship against Jordan.[232]
The following month, he allied himself with
The Bar (Cesaro and
Sheamus) in order to take on the reformed
Shield faction (Ambrose, Seth Rollins and
Roman Reigns).[233] Miz teamed with Cesaro, Sheamus, Kane and
Braun Strowman against Ambrose, Rollins and
Kurt Angle (who replaced Reigns after he was not medically cleared to compete[234]) in a 5-on-3 handicap Tables, Ladders and Chairs match at
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on October 22 in a losing effort.[235] On November 19, Miz faced SmackDown's
United States ChampionBaron Corbin at
Survivor Series in an interbrand champion vs. champion match, which he lost.[236] The following night on Raw, Miz lost to Roman Reigns in an Intercontinental Championship match, ending his title reign at 169 days.[237]
After taking a hiatus, Miz returned in January 2018, and won the Intercontinental Championship back from Roman Reigns during the
25th Anniversary of Raw, beginning his eighth reign with the championship.[238] Miz then participated in the
2018 Royal Rumble match on January 28, but he failed to win the match after being eliminated by the combined effort of Reigns and Seth Rollins.[239] At the
Elimination Chamber event on February 25, Miz competed in an Elimination Chamber match to determine the number one contender for
Brock Lesnar's
Universal Championship, but he was the first participant eliminated, by Braun Strowman.[240] Also around this time, Miz took part in the
Mixed Match Challenge tournament, with
Asuka as his partner.[241][242] They defeated the teams of
Big E and
Carmella,
Finn Bálor and
Sasha Banks[243][244] and Braun Strowman and
Alexa Bliss,[245] before defeating
Bobby Roode and
Charlotte Flair in the finals to win the tournament and earn $100,000 for the charity of their choice.[246] At
WrestleMania 34 on April 8, Miz lost the Intercontinental title to Seth Rollins in a triple threat match also involving Finn Bálor, suffering his first pinfall loss at WrestleMania.[247]
Feuds with Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon (2018–2020)
Throughout July and August, Miz would taunt and goad long-time rival
Daniel Bryan. Despite initially backing down from his Bryan's challenge for a match at
SummerSlam on August 20,[253] he reconsidered and accepted it.[254] Miz defeated Bryan after pinning him following the undetected use of a pair of
brass knuckles.[255] Following SummerSlam, it was announced that Miz and Maryse would be facing Bryan and his wife
Brie Bella at
Hell in a Cell.[256] At the event on September on September 16, Miz and Maryse were victorious after Maryse pinned Bella.[257] In October, Miz and Bryan were announced to be facing each other once more at the
Super Show-Down event with the winner getting a
WWE Championship match against
AJ Styles.[258] At the event on October 6, Miz lost to Bryan.[259]
On
the 1000th episode of SmackDown on October 16, Miz defeated
Rusev to qualify for the WWE World Cup tournament to determine the "Best Wrestler in the World" at
Crown Jewel event.[260] At the event on November 2, Miz defeated Jeff Hardy and
Rey Mysterio to advance to the finals against
Dolph Ziggler, but injured his knee before the match, rendering him unable to compete. SmackDown Commissioner
Shane McMahon replaced him and defeated Ziggler, winning the World Cup.[261] On the following episode of SmackDown, Bryan and Miz were announced as co-captain of the Men's
Survivor Series match at the
Survivor Series pay-per-view,[262] however, SmackDown General Manager
Paige removed Bryan from the match the following week and replaced him with Jeff Hardy, leaving Miz as the sole captain of Team SmackDown for the event.[263] At the event on November 18, Team SmackDown, which consisted of Miz, Hardy, Samoa Joe, McMahon and Mysterio, lost to Team Raw, which consisted of Finn Bálor, Bobby Lashley,
Drew McIntyre, Braun Strowman and Ziggler.[264]
Miz would begin to pursue a partnership with Shane McMahon, with the promise of becoming the "best tag team in the world".[265] McMahon would finally agree to the team proposal in December, turning Miz into a
fan favorite for the first time since June 2014.[266] The duo would then challenge
SmackDown Tag Team ChampionsThe Bar (
Cesaro and
Sheamus to a title match at the
2019 Royal Rumble pay-per-view on January 27, 2019,[267] in which Miz and McMahon would defeat the duo to become the new champions.[268] However, at
Elimination Chamber on February 17, Miz and McMahon lost the titles to
The Usos, ending their reign at 21 days.[269] The duo failed to regain the titles from the Usos at
Fastlane on March 10. After the loss, McMahon turned on Miz by attacking both him and his father at ringside, turning McMahon into a
villain.[270] This led to a
falls count anywhere match at
WrestleMania 35 on April 7, where Miz would dominate, but ultimately lost.[271] On April 15, Miz was drafted to Raw as part of the
2019 WWE Superstar Shake-up. Upon his acquisition, he would attack McMahon with a steel chair.[272] Subsequently, Miz would challenge McMahon to a
steel cage match at
Money in the Bank.[273] At the event on May 19, Miz was again narrowly defeated.[274] On June 7 at
Super ShowDown, Miz competed in the
51-man battle royal, but was eliminated by
Elias.[275][276]
In July, Miz restarted his feud with Dolph Ziggler after a confrontation on Miz TV.[277] A match between the two was arranged for
SummerSlam, however during the contract signing on the August 5 episode of Raw, Miz revealed that he was not Ziggler's opponent, instead it was the returning
Goldberg who would take Miz's place in the match. He stated in an interview: “I'll have many other opportunities at SummerSlam, but this might be Goldberg's last.”[278] On the Raw after SummerSlam, Miz defeated Ziggler to end their feud.[279] Miz then competed in the
2019 King of the Ring, but was eliminated in the first round by
Baron Corbin.[280] Miz then unsuccessfully challenged for
Shinsuke Nakamura's Intercontinental Championship at
Clash of Champions on September 15, after interference from Nakamura's manager
Sami Zayn.[281]
As part of the
2019 draft, Miz was drafted to the SmackDown brand.[282] During the November 1 episode of SmackDown,
NXT wrestler
Tommaso Ciampa disrupted an edition of Miz TV to air his grievances towards Miz, accusing him of being self-centered. He subsequently challenged Ciampa to a match, which he would lose via pinfall.[283] The following month, Miz began a feud with
Universal ChampionBray Wyatt, who, under his sinister
alter ego "The Fiend", proclaimed he wanted to become part of Miz's family. He would later attack Miz backstage.[284] Subsequently, a non-title match between Miz and Wyatt was arranged for the
TLC pay-per-view on December 15, which Miz lost.[285]
Reunion with John Morrison (2020–2021)
On the January 3, 2020 episode of SmackDown, Miz blindsided
Kofi Kingston after being defeated in a match against him and subsequently lashed out at the audience after being booed, turning
heel for the first time since 2018.[286] Later that night, he reunited with his former tag team partner
John Morrison, who made his return to WWE. Miz participated in the
2020 Royal Rumble match but was eliminated by the eventual winner
Drew McIntyre in 30 seconds.[287][288] After winning a title shot on the January 31, episode of SmackDown,[289] Miz and Morrison won the SmackDown Tag Team Championship from The New Day at
Super ShowDown.[290][291] At
Elimination Chamber on March 8, Miz and Morrison retained the championship over
The New Day,
The Usos, Heavy Machinery (
Otis and
Tucker), Lucha House Party (
Gran Metalik and
Lince Dorado) and
Dolph Ziggler and
Robert Roode in a tag team Elimination Chamber match.[292] Miz and Morrison were originally set to defend the championship in a triple threat tag team ladder match against The New Day and The Usos at
WrestleMania 36,[293] but Miz pulled out of the event due to concerns arising from the
COVID-19 pandemic.[294] Instead, Morrison individually defended the championship in a triple threat ladder match against Kofi Kingston of The New Day and
Jimmy Uso of The Usos, which Morrison won.[295] On the April 17 episode of SmackDown, the duo lost the titles back to The New Day after Miz unsuccessfully defended the titles by himself in a triple threat match against
Big E and
Jey Uso ending their reign at 50 days.[296] At
Money in the Bank on May 10, Miz and Morrison unsuccessfully attempted to regain the championship in a fatal four-way tag team match also involving Lucha House Party (
Gran Metalik and
Lince Dorado) and The Forgotten Sons (Steve Cutler and
Wesley Blake).[297] Next, Miz and Morrison started a rivalry with
Universal ChampionBraun Strowman.[298][299] At
Backlash on June 14, the duo competed for Strowman's title in a two-on-one
handicap match, but lost.[300]
Miz and Morrison then began feuding with Otis and Tucker in pursuit of Otis'
Money in the Bank contract.[301] During the
2020 WWE Draft in October, Miz and Morrison were drafted to the Raw brand.[302][303] At
Hell in a Cell on October 25, Miz defeated Otis to win the Money in the Bank contract, becoming the second person not to do so in the Money in the Bank ladder match, and the third person to hold the contract more than once.[304][305] Miz cashed in his Money in the Bank contract on December 20 at the
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs event during a TLC match between
AJ Styles and the
WWE Champion Drew McIntyre, making the match a triple threat in the process, but was unsuccessful as McIntyre retained his title.[306] However, on the December 28 episode of Raw, Miz had the contract returned to him as the cash-in at TLC was ruled invalid due to Morrison cashing in the contract on his behalf (as only the contract holder himself can cash it in).[307] Miz entered the
Royal Rumble match on January 31, 2021, but he was quickly eliminated by the debuting
Damian Priest.[308] At
Elimination Chamber on February 21, Miz would successfully cash his Money in the Bank contract on WWE Champion Drew McIntyre, after McIntyre was assaulted by
Bobby Lashley, starting his second reign with the WWE Championship[309] which made him the first ever two-time
WWE Grand Slam champion.[310] Miz would go on to lose the championship to Lashley on the March 1 episode of Raw, ending his reign at only eight days.[311]
After this, Miz and Morrison feuded with Damian Priest and rapper
Bad Bunny.[308][312][313] On the first night of
WrestleMania 37 on April 10, Miz and Morrison were defeated by Bad Bunny and Priest.[314] At
WrestleMania Backlash on May 16, Miz lost to Priest. After the match, Miz was seemingly "eaten" by zombies as a way to cross-promote Army of the Dead.[315] During the match, Miz suffered the first legitimate injury in his WWE career after tearing his ACL, taking him out of action indefinitely. Despite his injury, Miz would continue appearing television in a wheelchair accompanying Morrison in his matches.[316] Miz returned from injury on the August 16 episode of Raw, losing to Damian Priest.[317] The next week on Raw, Miz attacked Morrison, ending their partnership.[318] Afterwards, Miz took time off to compete on the
thirtieth season of Dancing with the Stars.
Various feuds (2021–2023)
Miz, along with Maryse, returned on the November 29 episode of Raw, where he confronted
Edge.[319] The following week on Raw, after another heated verbal exchange between the two during a Miz TV segment, Miz challenged Edge to a match at
Day 1, which Edge accepted.[320] At Day 1 on January 1, 2022, Edge defeated Miz.[321] On the following episode of Raw, Miz accepted a challenge by Edge and
Beth Phoenix for a
mixed tag team match at
Royal Rumble on January 29 between him and Maryse,[322] which Edge and Phoenix won.[323][324]
On the first night of
WrestleMania 38 on April 2, Miz and social media star
Logan Paul defeated
The Mysterios. After the match, Miz performed his finishing maneuver, the Skull Crushing Finale, on Logan Paul, subsequently turning on him.[325] On the July 4 episode of Raw, The Miz gained a new ally in
Tommaso Ciampa, joining forces to attack
AJ Styles.[326] Meanwhile, Miz and Paul began a feud which led to a match between the two at
SummerSlam on July 30,[327] which Paul won.[328][329] On the August 22 episode of Raw, Miz was kidnapped by
Dexter Lumis, who continued to attack him and stalk him over the following weeks. It was later revealed by
Johnny Gargano that The Miz had been paying Lumis to stage these attacks to gain Miz publicity. Miz then stopped paying Lumis, and the attacks became real.[330][331] On the November 28 episode to Raw, Miz lost to Lumis in an Anything Goes match where Lumis earned a WWE contract. On the December 19 episode of Raw, Miz defeated Lumis in a Winner Takes All Ladder Match of prize money after interference from the returning
Bronson Reed, ending their feud. Miz then embarked upon a losing streak.
At the
Royal Rumble on January 28, 2023, Miz entered the titular match, but was eliminated by
Sheamus.[332] On the February 20 episode of Raw, during the celebration of their anniversary, Maryse handed Miz an envelope with Miz promising to reveal its contents on the following episode of “Raw”. This led to Miz being named the official host of
WrestleMania 39. At WrestleMania, Miz lost impromptu matches against
Pat McAfee and
Snoop Dogg, the latter replacing an legitimately injured
Shane McMahon early in the bout. On the June 19 episode of Raw, Ciampa returned to answer Miz's open challenge, which Ciampa won, thus ending their alliance.[333] On the July 11 episode of Raw, Miz earnt his first victory of 2023, defeating Ciampa in a
No Disqualification match with the help of Bronson Reed.[334]
Miz then entered into a brief feud with
LA Knight, leading to a match at
Payback with
John Cena serving as special guest referee, which Miz lost.[335] On the September 15 episode of SmackDown, Miz was defeated by Knight once again to end their feud.[336]
On the October 30 episode of Raw, Miz confronted
Intercontinental ChampionGunther on Miz TV before being attacked by
Imperium, turning
face for the first time since January 2020.[337] The following week, Miz won a
fatal four-way match to earn a title match against Gunther at
Survivor Series WarGames.[338] At the event on November 25, Miz failed to win the title from Gunther.[339] Miz challenged Gunther for the title again on the December 18 episode of Raw in a losing effort and, per the stipulation,
cannot challenge for the title again as long as Gunther remains champion.[340]
The Miz's finisher, per the reality television and Hollywood tie-ins to his character, is a
full nelson facebuster dubbed the Skull Crushing Finale.[1] He originally performed a
swinging neckbreaker dubbed Mizard of Oz that he developed into a
running knee lift followed by a
neckbreaker slam, named the Reality Check,[347] before abandoning them both and adopting his new finisher in mid-2009.[84][83]
Having been associated with Ric Flair, The Miz occasionally performs Flair's submission hold, the
figure-four leg lock.[348] Since his storyline with Daniel Bryan, The Miz incorporated several of Bryan's moves, like the Yes! Kicks, which he nicknames the It Kicks.[349]
Criticism has been focused on the booking of The Miz's character. When he became a heroic character in late-2012, his turn was not well received by critics, who commented that Miz as a fan favorite was too similar to his villainous character because he was "still cocky, arrogant, and egotistical" while "pivoted toward calling out established heels" (villains). Other criticisms were that Miz was "juvenile", lacking of depth, "grating and not endearing to the audience" and that "there was not that moment when he officially turned and aligned his values with the audience's".[156][350][351][352] After The Miz won the WWE Championship for the second time in February 2021, Zack Heydorn for Pro Wrestling Torch questioned the decision to give him the championship, writing that he had not been presented as "a credible professional wrestler in the ring", and complained his recent booking had not made him believable contender for a world championship. He then concluded by saying that he "should be far away from the WWE Championship picture."[353] Ryan Byers of 411Mania considered Miz to be a poor world champion, stating that he was "booked ridiculously weakly".[354] Despite this disapproval towards his character, Miz has received praise for his promos and speaking ability.[355][356]
Other media
In 2008, Miz made his first WWE video game appearance in WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 and appears in every WWE video game since, with his latest appearance being WWE 2K24.[357]
In 2012, Miz also appeared in the WWE Studios and Kare Prod project Les reines du ring (Queens of the Ring), alongside
Eve Torres and
CM Punk, and on MDA Show of Strength with Maryse and other celebrities.[358] In March 2013, he attended the
Kids Choice Awards with Maryse and
The Rock.[359]
In 2016, Mizanin guest-starred in Supernatural as a wrestler named Shawn Harley in an organization targeted by a demon.[365]
In 2018, Mizanin and his wife Maryse starred in a
USA Network reality television series titled Miz & Mrs.[22] In 2020, he starred on a second show on USA, serving as host of the game show Cannonball.
Personal life
Mizanin married his longtime girlfriend, Canadian fellow WWE wrestler
Maryse Ouellet, in
The Bahamas on February 20, 2014.[366][367] Their first daughter, Monroe Sky Mizanin, was born on March 27, 2018.[368][369] Shortly thereafter, the family moved to
Austin, Texas.[370] During WWE's Elimination Chamber event in February 2019, the couple announced that they were expecting their second child in September.[371] In August 2019, they moved permanently to
Thousand Oaks, California.[372] Their second daughter, Madison Jade Mizanin, was born on September 20, 2019.[373][374]
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"RAW: Team Cena is falling apart". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Archived from the original on July 14, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2010.{{
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^Tedesco, Mike (December 18, 2012).
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^Meltzer, Dave (February 2023). "February 2023 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Results of the 2022 Wrestling Observer Newsletter Awards". Wrestling Observer Newsletter.