For many, Phil “CM Punk” Brooks is a wrestling legend, a guy whose 434 day reign as WWE champion dominated the 2010s. He retired from wrestling in 2014, though, and has been putting some of his dramatic in-ring skills to good use in another entertainment realm. As the star of The Girl On The Third Floor, Brooks has been garnering rave reviews for his portrayal of Don, a misogynist ex-con who is off attempting to renovate a cursed home before his wife has their first child. Don says he’s on the straight-and-narrow now, but quickly gets in his own way, much to the dismay of whoever—or whatever—haunts the house he’s attempting to rehab.
The A.V. Club sat down with Brooks to talk about Don’s morality, his love for the slasher genre, and whether he thinks it’s reasonable for fans to want him to return to the ring.