I love being a part of storytelling, so whether I'm getting to do that on Survivor, or do it through kids' adventure books, or directing a movie, it's all sort of the same: Once Upon a Time...
Survivor Series is something that was very surreal to me to be a part of, but now, I just want to do it again.
I don't know about young Thor and King Thor getting their own series someday, although it would be nice if I could write three Thor series at the same time.
I was given a chance some time ago, and it changed my life forever. I want to be able to give the same chance to the next generation of artists. There's a new wave coming, and we are going to be a part of it.
I want to do something that has never been done, and that's become the first two-time NXT Champion. In a sense, that's a strange distinction to want, but that has to be my goal while I'm in NXT.
NXT has been great to me. I love being able to wrestle the way I want to wrestle and be who I want to be. NXT is this amazing platform to do that.
I started out being a stand up and writing my own material. That took me to Talk Soup, where I was writing and performing for TV. So everything is all the same job in my eyes, and I don't want to ever give up any part of it. I will say that stand-up is my first love; it's how I got started and is in my bones.
I had my first 'Survivor Series' in 1991 and I was fortunate enough to be an instrumental part of the shows I was on.
That's a discovery process. That's the terrifying and wonderful part about getting picked up to series. You get to develop the stories and talk about the characters, and find out where the heart of the series is.
Getting hit is part of the job. You don't want the first time you're getting punched to be in the fight because there's a lot of shock and awe and you won't react well. I like to get hit in sparring. I don't want to get concussed, or I don't want to be getting knocked out, but I want some shock treatment to prepare me for the fight.
You want to be taken seriously as an artist and not just known as 'that girl wrestler who sings.' So you want to go out and stand on your own legs. But at the same time, I don't negate the fact that without everything I've accomplished in wrestling, I wouldn't have been given so many really cool opportunities on the music side.
Being in a long-running series is great because it gives you so many opportunities - but at the same time it's a bit desk jobby: you go to the same place every day, you do the same thing and you play the same character.
'Survivor' wouldn't have happened had I not gone out there and helped CBS to sell sponsors to finance the first one. Part of my thinking on 'Survivor' was that it should have rewards that are corporate brands. A Big Mac, one thimble-full of Coca-Cola.
I wanted to be a part of WWE and part of NXT first, as, if I went to 'Raw' or 'SmackDown' right away, I would always wonder what NXT would have been like.
I prefer being known for my stand-up because I write it. I love being an actor, and saying other people's words is great. But then, when I do stand-up, I love getting my own point of view out there.
I feel terrible for directors of TV because all the episodes have to look the same. They make a great series for five or six years, and then when it's canceled, they can't break out on their own.