Zoe Hines, the niece of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his wife Cheryl Hines, is entering the world of professional sports.
The 23-year-old is a former collegiate softball player for Boston College but has pivoted in a completely different direction.
Hines has signed a contract with WWE in her first step towards becoming a professional wrestler, the wrestling organization announced this week.
She will begin training and wrestling as part of WWE’s weekly NXT television program, which focuses on its rising talents.
Hines previously tried out for WWE in August 2025 at an open tryout held by the company surrounding its annual SummerSlam event.
‘Surprise! I’m officially a WWE Wrestler!!’ Hines wrote on Instagram, alongside photos of her posing on the NXT stage.
Zoe Hines (L), the niece of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is entering the world of professional sports
Hines signed a contract with WWE in her first step towards becoming a professional wrestler
However, Hines’s signing raised eyebrows with many wrestling fans questioning if it was a political move, given the company’s close ties to the Trump administration.
Former WWE co-owner Linda McMahon currently serves as the US Secretary of Education, while Hines’s uncle, RFK Jr., is US Health and Human Services Secretary.
Current WWE executive Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque also serves as the vice chair on the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition.
Longtime wrestling podcast Dave Meltzer even went as far as to claim that the signing was ‘politically forced.’
‘I certainly heard a lot about Zoe Hines, I’d say six months ago, and it was very much like this is one that was politically forced on them,’ he said on his Wrestling Observer Radio show.
‘I mean, she’s a real athlete, she’s a softball player. When she had her tryout, it’s not like she knocked them dead or even knocked them even.
‘It was very much said that it was a forced hiring because of who she was and because of Robert F. Kennedy and Linda McMahon both being in the cabinet, and it was just that she wanted to try… It was like Simone Johnson (Dwayne Johnson’s daughter), the same thing.’
Meltzer added that he had heard some members within WWE were ‘dreading’ the signing of Hines.
Hines’s signing raised eyebrows with many wrestling fans questioning if it was a political move
‘As far as the hiring of her, I would say it was probably known easily a year ago that it was inevitable that this would happen,’ he continued.
Meanwhile, others took to the comment section on Hines’s announcement post, branding her a ‘nepo.’
Hines wasn’t the only rookie to join the WWE ranks this week, the company also announced the signings of four other future stars.
Garrett Beck, Nicholas Panicali, and Alyssa Daniele also all joined as part of the company’s latest NXT rookie class.
