Former WWE & UFC star Ronda Rousey releasing first graphic novel

Former WWE & UFC star Ronda Rousey has taken on a new project in her writing career.

On July 25, a Kickstarter campaign will launch for “Expecting the Unexpected,” Rousey’s debut graphic novel. It’s written by Rousey, illustrated by comic artist Mike Deodato Jr., and is being released by AWA Studios.

The graphic novel is 160 pages long and “follows Mom, a deadly hitwoman with a bounty on her head who must fight off wave after wave of assassins, all while learning she’s newly pregnant.” The main characters in the story are based on Rousey and her husband Travis Browne.

Here is the synopsis for the story:

“With a fake baby bump filled with guns, she’s built a reputation as one of the deadliest hitwomen on the planet. But on the verge of her big break in the criminal underworld, Mom makes a fateful decision: sleeping with a potential target (who just so happens to be a top-ranked assassin himself). A few weeks later, Mom finds that her codename is about to become a whole lot more literal. What follows is a wild mashup of action, adventure, comedy, and romance as a newly pregnant Mom with a bounty on her head fights off wave after wave of assassins, falls in love with her baby daddy, and decides how to face her personal and professional predicament.“

Rousey initially thought of the story idea years ago as a potential screenplay. As a “closet nerd” of graphic novels, Rousey tells the Los Angeles Times she decided this was a better direction for the project after realizing she was too unproven to star in a film version of it.

The LA Times asked Rousey if she’d still be willing to do a screenplay based on the graphic novel.

“Twist my arm and I’ll do it,” Rousey laughed. “But I’m also so happy with where I’m at. I don’t see this as a stepping stone, I see this as a new path that I never dreamed would be available to me, and I’m enjoying the scenery more than I ever thought was possible.”

The graphic novel follows Rousey’s two memoirs, “My Fight/Your Fight” and “Our Fight,” in her writing career. She’s also penning the screenplay for a Netflix movie based on her life using her two memoirs as the source material.

It’s been nearly a year since Rousey last competed in a WWE ring. She departed the company after facing Shayna Baszler at SummerSlam in August 2023. Last fall, Rousey teamed with her friend Marina Shafir in two indie matches and in one match for ROH.

Rousey has said she wouldn’t go back to WWE unless things “drastically change” with how the company is run.