Total Bellas: Wrestling’s Superstar Twins Nikki and Brie on E!

E!

The Bella Twins’ popularity has reached new heights with the success of the WWE reality series Total Divas.

So much, in fact, that E! green-lit a spinoff appropriately titled Total Bellas, which debuts Oct. 5, 8pm ET/7pm CT. The show, shot over the course of a month, sees Brie and husband Daniel Bryan staying under one roof in Tampa with Nikki and her longtime love John Cena.

Why do the show & who is in it?

“Brie and I were transitioning into a different point in our life, which is why we thought we should do this spinoff,” says Nikki. “Brie wants to have babies. I went through a serious neck injury. Bryan was retiring. All this stuff was happening, and we didn’t know where our lives were going to go.”

And if that isn’t enough Bella for you, the ladies’ brother JJ Garcia and his wife, Lola, plus their mom Kathy Colace and her new husband John Laurinaitis are also in the mix. The sisters are excited for viewers to learn how Mama Bella fell in love with, and got married to — you guessed it! — a former wrestler and WWE executive. Nikki’s recovery from the ring and Bryan’s retirement are also central themes.

Total Bellas features more than just the women and their points of view

Brie believes what separates Total Bellas from Total Divas is that it features more than just the women and their points of view. “You are going to see Bryan’s perception of what is happening,” she said. “He is sitting in the interview chair, so you’ll hear from him. You are going to hear from John, my brother and Johnny. I think that’s good, because it gives both sides of the situations going on.

“The great thing is what Bryan went through is what a lot of people go through,” Brie continues. “Granted, it’s not always wrestling — but people struggle everyday, and have their dreams taken away from them, or something being taken away from them. I think because of that people will be able to relate to Bryan and think, ‘If Daniel Bryan can go through this and find a positive outlook in the end of it then I can too. I think it will be really inspiring.”

Of course the premise is poised for a bit of comedy when personalities clash, which often creates a prime recipe for levity

“I will say one thing. John is not the only one who is OCD,” Brie admitted. “My sister has it extremely bad too. There were these rules — like we had to make our bed every morning. My sister was asking me to take the garbage out on a Friday night and I said, ‘You’re kidding, right? We can do that later.’”

“You can throw your trash in my garbage, but can’t take it out?” Nikki retorts. “…You see me go into that surgery. You see me come out of surgery. You see my struggles all throughout. I thought a neck brace was really bad, and having that on for three months, but then I had my family live with me for a month! I’m just kidding. I loved it.”

Focus on the family

Through the good times and bad, the Bella’s believe audiences can relate to their family on many levels.

“We are like everyone else,” Brie said.

“We go through the same issues other married couples do, siblings do. At the end of the day you figure out a way to work it out, sit at a table and eat and laugh with each other. I think that is what people will take away. At the end of the day life is truly not that bad. Suck it up and enjoy what you are given.”

“I feel every family has certain issues behind closed doors,” Nikki added.

“You work through it. One thing we really show you is how important it is spending time together. It’s important to put the cell phones away at dinner and sit and talk to each other. And talk about how your day was. Even though we smile and do what we do on social media, we do have our breakdowns, fights, meltdowns and all this stuff. It’s important for people to see that they are not alone. If they can be inspired or motivated by what they see, that’s what we want to do.”

Total Bellas > E! > Wednesdays beginning Oct. 5