Zilla Fatu Discusses Growing Up As Former WWE Star Umaga's Son

Fans might have their favorite wrestling family, but objectively, none reach further than the Anoaʻi family when it comes to the sheer number of stars it's produced. Jacob Fatu, part of WWE's white-hot Bloodline storyline, is currently the youngest member of prominence, but outside of WWE, even fresher faces are hungry to make a name for themselves, and one among them is 25-year-old Zilla Fatu, the son of the late WWE Superstar Umaga. 

He recently sat down with "Apollo HOU" to describe what it was like growing up as the son of a quasi-main eventer. 

"In the beginning, it was normal," Fatu said of his upbringing. "[But] obviously, being the son of Umaga, we got perks, right? It got real, to where one time I was in trouble, and the principal's like, 'Wait. Who's your dad?' And she let me go. It was stuff like that."

Tales of WWE's grueling travel schedule are almost as legendary as its wrestlers, especially during the Vince McMahon era. But the younger Fatu said his father always tried to carve out time for his family.

"Even though my dad was on the road, he still found time to come see me, his family, and his friends," Fatu said. "He would literally come to the school and buy everybody lunch. ... seeing other little kids, my friends, seeing their reactions to being around him, that's when, 'Oh, wait. Hold on. I been growing up in something serious.'"

Throughout most of 2024, Fatu had been racking up wins in Game Changer Wrestling. However, he was released from GCW due to an undisclosed incident. Booker T, who helped train Fatu at his Reality of Wrestling school, said part of a wrestler's growth is dealing with setbacks, and he has predicted Fatu would find his way to the WWE.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Apollo HOU" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.