April Jeanette Mendez (born March 19, 1987) is an American author, screenwriter and retired professional wrestler.

She signed with WWE in 2009 and spent two years in its developmental branch, Florida Championship Wrestling, before her promotion to the main roster.

In 2012, she rose to prominence through storylines with her "mentally unstable" character, such as high-profile relationships and a three-month stint as the General Manager of Raw.

[6] Her mother, Janet Acevedo, was a homemaker and later a home health aide, while her father, Robert Mendez, was an automotive engineer.

[11] She attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where she majored in film and television production,[11][14] until family and financial issues led to her dropping out six months into her studies.

She also won the annual WSU/National Wrestling Superstars King and Queen of the Ring tournament alongside Jay Lethal two months later.

[22][23] She reported to Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), WWE's developmental territory,[22] and debuted under the ring name April Lee at a house show in late July.

[25] A few months later, AJ was eliminated from a tournament that determined the inaugural FCW Divas Champion;[21] she engaged in a feud with the winner, Naomi Knight, and her character became a heel (bad guy).

The show mixed professional wrestling and reality competition formats as six female participants from FCW competed to be WWE's "next breakout star".

[37] AJ made her main roster debut on the May 27, 2011, episode of SmackDown as part of a tag team with Kaitlyn,[38] referring to themselves as "The Chickbusters".

[50][51] By November 2011, AJ was placed in an on-screen romance with Daniel Bryan,[52] who won the World Heavyweight Championship the next month and developed heel traits.

[55] On January 13, 2012, while accompanying Bryan for his title defense, she was accidentally struck by Big Show and carried off on a stretcher as part of the storyline.

[58][59] At WrestleMania XXVIII on April 1, after sharing a "good luck kiss" with Bryan, he was surprised by Sheamus and defeated in 18 seconds.

[69] As Bryan and Punk's feud progressed, AJ was announced as the special guest referee for their title match at Money in the Bank.

[75] Her on-screen authority role began on July 30, where she alleged that Bryan only wanted the legal leverage to have her committed and forced him to undergo his own psychological evaluation.

[76] AJ continued to exact revenge on both Bryan and Punk throughout her tenure, denying their requests and booking them in matches against their wishes.

[87] During their match at TLC on December 16, AJ turned heel by interfering and pushing Cena off a ladder, causing him to lose.

[89] Subsequently accompanied by Langston as her bodyguard,[90] she explained that Cena had "toyed with" her emotions and "broke her heart", so she helped Ziggler "break" him.

[95] The next night on Raw, she and Langston accompanied Ziggler as he cashed in his Money in the Bank contract on Alberto Del Rio to win the World Heavyweight Championship.

[98] On June 10, after setting up Langston to pose as the admirer, AJ revealed it to be a mind game, berated Kaitlyn and left her in tears.

She hit his opponent, Alberto Del Rio, with her title belt to protect him from further head injury, prompting a disqualification.

[107] Kaitlyn and Ziggler ultimately joined to defeat AJ and Langston in a mixed tag team match at SummerSlam on August 18.

[117][c] After fending off title contenders Cameron[120] and Natalya,[121] AJ renewed her on-screen rivalry with SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero, who forced her to defend the Divas Championship in a 14-woman match at WrestleMania XXX.

[124] The next night on Raw, AJ challenged the debuting Paige to an impromptu title match and was defeated, ending her then-record reign at 295 days.

[140] In February 2015, Mendez criticized WWE's treatment of its female wrestlers, stating they receive only a fraction of the wages and screen time of their male counterparts despite having generated record-selling merchandise and several top-rated segments.

[141][142] AJ returned on the March 2 episode of Raw, saving her former rival Paige from an attack by Nikki and Brie Bella.

She had also "felt caught in the middle" between WWE and her husband CM Punk following his controversial departure in January 2014 but continued to wrestle for as long as she could.

[10][18][22] This persona, labeled the "crazy chick",[9][151] caused Mendez to feel that she "was hiding in plain sight" due to her bipolar disorder.

[136] She primarily performed the octopus hold submission as her finishing maneuver,[3] named "Black Widow" in reference to the Marvel Comics character.

[166] They wrote the Dungeons & Dragons four-issue limited series At the Spine of the World; the first issue was published by IDW in November 2020.