Throughout 2026, WWE star Sami Zayn has undergone a slow burn of a character transformation, sped up around his WWE WrestleMania 42 feud with the United States Championship against Trick Williams. Many fans of Zayn’s haven’t been keen on his character arc, and one WWE Hall of Famer offered his advice to the former US Champion

Jimmy Hart appeared on Cody Rhodes’ “What Do You Want to Talk About?” podcast and said he still keeps up with all three brands of the product and loves it all, from “WWE NXT” to the red and blue brands. He explained to Rhodes that he rode with Zayn around WrestleMania weekend, and had a thought, but didn’t voice it to Zayn at the time.

“We were talking and everything else, and I knew he was going against Trick,” Hart said. “Look, when you got the outfits Trick’s got, and you got the music and you got the manager and you got the everything you got, people are going to love you… I didn’t say it to Sami, but I wanted to say, ‘You know Sami, when you make a change, you gotta change that look.’ I wanted to say, ‘Look, dye your hair black. Cut your beard different. Black, that’s a change. Do a different outfit, because sometimes, you just can’t keep the same look and be the same.'”

Hart said that in the professional wrestling business now, everything changes and you just have to roll with it. He explained that he always would check merchandise sale numbers and ratings for segments to help him get a better grasp on things when it came to the talents he managed.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “What Do You Want to Talk About?” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.