Renee Jane Paquetteis a Canadian-American television personality. She is signed toAll Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a backstage interviewer. She was previously known for her time inWWE between 2012 and 2020, where she served as a commentator, presenter, and interviewer under thering nameRenee Young. During her time in WWE, Young also appeared as a main cast member on the reality TV seriesTotal Divas. Before signing with WWE, she was a sports broadcaster forThe Score Television Network.
Renee Jane Paquette[2][3] was born inToronto,Ontario, Canada.[4][5] After high school, she applied to several colleges and began training inimprov comedy.[6] At the age of 19, she relocated toLos Angeles to pursue a career as a comedic actress, but later moved back to Toronto and auditioned for films, music videos, and commercials there instead.[6] After becoming frustrated with her lack of auditions, she became interested in broadcasting instead of acting.[6]
Paquette signed with the Americanprofessional wrestling promotionWWE in October 2012,[10] where she was initially given thering name Renee Sterling[11] before choosing the name Renee Young (a nod toNeil Young).[12] Her first appearance was as a co-host on the2012 Survivor Series pre-show alongsideScott Stanford.[13] Young then debuted on the January 23, 2013, episode ofNXT as a backstage interviewer.[14] She began performing interviews exclusively for WWE Active in February 2013.[15] Renee made herSmackDown debut on the March 29 episode, interviewingRandy Orton,Big Show, andSheamus.[16][17]
Renee Young in April 2014
Young began co-hosting the World Tour segments, which was a segment detailing the city they were filming in, showcasing various tourist attractions, before later being promoted as a third main presenter on theJBL and Cole Show, which was shown onYouTube and WWE's website, until its cancellation in June 2015.[18] It received aSlammy Award for Favorite Web Show of the Year.[19] She also presentedWWE Vintage Collection alongsideGene Okerlund.[20]
In September 2013, Young made her commentary debut onNXT.[21] She began performing color commentary during women's matches, before later becoming a full-time color commentator onNXT for several months.[6][22] From July 3, 2014, to January 9, 2015, Young served as a color commentator onSuperstars, alongsideTom Phillips, which made her WWE's first full-time female announcer in more than a decade.[23] In April 2015, Young began hosting her ownWWE Network show,Unfiltered with Renee Young, in which she interviews fellow WWE employees.[24] In June, Young served as the co-host of thesixth season ofTough Enough, alongsideChris Jericho.[25]
On the December 20, 2016, episode ofSmackDown, Young interviewedWWE Intercontinental ChampionThe Miz following his successful title defense againstApollo Crews. After Young asked Miz about his "obsession" withDean Ambrose, Miz sarcastically responded by revealing Young and Ambrose's real-life relationship, prompting her to slap Miz.[26] On December 27, Young was confronted by The Miz's real-life wife,Maryse, backstage onSmackDown.[27] Maryse slapped Young the following week in retaliation, for which she was fined.[28]
Young filled in forJonathan Coachman as a guest commentator on the August 13, 2018, episode ofRaw, making her the first woman to call an entire episode ofRaw.[29] Young joined theRaw commentary team full-time the following month and became the first permanent female commentator on the program.[30] Beginning in October 2019, Young moved toSmackDown as a "special contributor" and began co-hosting the new studio programWWE Backstage onFox Sports 1 withBooker T.[31] On November 1, 2019, Young filled in as commentator onSmackDown, asMichael Cole andCorey Graves missed the episode due to travel delays returning fromCrown Jewel.[32] Young announced her departure from WWE atSummerSlam in August 2020, stating that the event would be her last appearance with the company.[33] Young explained that she left WWE because of the cancelation ofWWE Backstage and that she felt that she had accomplished everything in WWE.[34]
Paquette, as Renee Young, returned for a specialSmackDown pre-show on Friday, October 16, co-hosting the kickoff show alongsideBooker T as a part of the celebration of season two ofSmackDown onFox.[35] Paquette made a special appearance on the return ofWWE Backstage, for the January 30, 2021, episode, promoting the upcomingRoyal Rumble, with her returning co-hostsPaige, and Booker T.[citation needed]
In 2021, Paquette began her own podcastOral Sessions with Renee Paquette (later renamedThe Sessions with Renee Paquette).[citation needed] In addition to the podcast, she created her ownYouTube channel to accompany the audio episodes in the form of video clips, and full podcast episodes, under the channel name ofRenee Paquette.[36] In September 2021, she also began hosting a show onSirius XM with formerStrikeforce andUFC Women's Bantamweight ChampionMiesha Tate calledThrowing Down with Renee and Miesha.[37]
On October 12, 2022,Tony Khan confirmed via his social media account that Paquette had signed withAll Elite Wrestling (AEW).[38] She made her debut the same night onDynamite.[39]
Before joining The Score, Paquette worked forBiteTV, where she presented a show about extreme sports and music calledRippin' It-N-Lippin' It during 2008 and 2009.[6] She appeared in a commercial for Oxy and had a part in aTom Green music video.[6] Prior to this, she had a cameo in the music video forKelly Clarkson's 2005 song "Behind These Hazel Eyes".[6] She also appeared in a nationalNoxzema commercial and did a photoshoot forToro Magazine.[40] In 2016, Paquette began appearing as a main cast member for the sixth season ofTotal Divas.[41] She had previously appeared in several episodes on a recurring basis. She also hosted the podcastRegular Girls with Stacy McGunnigle.[42]
Paquette began dating American professional wrestler Jonathan Good (better known asJon Moxley and formerly Dean Ambrose) in 2013.[43][44] They were married at theirLas Vegas home in an impromptu ceremony in April 9, 2017.[3][45][46] In November 2020, Paquette and Good announced that they were expecting their first child.[47][48] Their daughter, Nora Murphy Good, was born on June 15, 2021.[49][50][51]
Paquette is a fan of theVegas Golden Knights ice hockey team.[52] On being a wrestling fan in both her childhood and adulthood, she said, "I attended a few events andWrestleMania VI. My father is a concert promoter and he used to get me into events. I recall being backstage and meetingStone Cold Steve Austin,Triple H,Chyna, &Trish Stratus as a kid, so it's really funny to me that I ended up here. I went down a distinct path than wanting to be a WWE Superstar."[6]
In March 2021, Renee reported that she became an American citizen.[53] In May, she posted her cookbookMessy in the Kitchen: My Guide to Eating Deliciously, Hosting Fabulously and Sipping Copiously.[54]
Paquette, Renee (2021).Messy in the Kitchen: My Guide to Eating Deliciously, Hosting Fabulously and Sipping Copiously. Permuted Press.ISBN978-1-64293-930-9.
^Edge & Christian (May 11, 2018)."E&C's Pod of Awesomeness" (Podcast). Event occurs at 30:05. Archived fromthe original on November 8, 2019. RetrievedMarch 15, 2019.
^Chris Jericho (June 19, 2015)."Talk is Jericho – EP153".Talk is Jericho (Podcast). PodcastOne. Event occurs at 14:33.Archived from the original on June 13, 2022. RetrievedJuly 14, 2017.
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