Tag: AEW

Cody And Brandi Rhodes Say That There Will Be No Scripted Promos In AEW

Yesterday was a historic day in the world of professional wrestling as it was officially announced that AEW will be airing in prime time on TNT later this year. With the deal, AEW has become the first wrestling company outside of WWE to secure a television deal in the U.S. on a top 25 cable network since WCW folded.

At yesterday’s WarnerMedia upfronts in New York City, AEW Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes and Chief Branding Officer Brandi Rhodes spoke with WrestlingNews.co about the big announcement.

“This is serendipity how this is coming together,” Cody said. “My family moved to Atlanta 20+ years ago because WCW was going to Turner. Here we are talking about All Elite Wrestling in 2019 going to Turner. It’s just wild how it works and the number 1 thing I discovered is we build the best team. That’s what led to all of this. All In happened, me, Matt and Nick, Kenny joining and then Tony Khan being the guy to say ‘hey, I believe in you guys. I’ll invest in you guys, I believe in wrestling outside of one company.’ That has put us here so I’m really excited.”

AEW plans to offer a real alternative to WWE programming. One of the major criticisms about WWE has been their scripted promos. Cody claimed that “you might not see one scripted promo” on their television.

“When it comes to promos, if we invested you, we already know your voice,” Cody said. “We just want to put the voice out there for more people to hear. There’s great coaches we have, great collaborators. Guys like Jim Ross, guys like Billy Gunn, a bunch of guys I can’t name. We have these great collaborators, plus all of us who want to make this work. Collaboration yes, micromanagement no, scripted no, that’s the best.”

“We’re honest when we say that we want it to be very sports-centric,” Brandi added. “In order to do that, it has to be focused on the bell-to-bell, the actual matches, less of the drama and the behind-the-scenes.”

Brandi also said that the company plans to keep their roster active and not sitting on the sidelines.

“We’ve obviously been cautious in building our [women’s] division because we don’t want people to be sitting weeks and weeks out of the year not being active, not being used, not being having stories, not having reasons for you to like them,” Brandi stated. “So we’ve been very careful to pick and choose competitors that we think we are gonna be able to keep moving in some sort of sense.”

Despite all of the major developments, AEW has yet to run their first show. AEW’s first pay-per-view, Double Or Nothing, will take place next Saturday night in Las Vegas. Cody said that the company plans to make the event a great one.

“Jim Ross has been really good about saying ‘it can’t be good, it’s gotta be great.’ He’s right and everyone in the group shares that sentiment,” Cody said. “We gotta make this great and it’s just the beginning. It’s the perfect jumping in point for a brand new fan. There’s nothing before this, just jump in now and you’ll love it.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW At WarnerMedia Upfronts, Chris Jericho Takes Credit For AEW TV Deal, Double Or Nothing PPV Prices Revealed

It was announced yesterday that WarnerMedia has signed with All Elite Wrestling for a multi-platform launch of the new promotion. TNT will air a weekly AEW TV series later this year and AEW’s special events will air on WarnerMedia’s Bleacher Report Live platform. AEW’s Double Or Nothing event will air on B/R Live and traditional pay-per-view on Saturday, May 25. You can read the full announcement on the WarnerMedia – AEW deal at this link.

The price for Double Or Nothing on B/R Live is listed at $49.99 for the event.

Double Or Nothing is listed for $60 on AT&T pay-per-view, $50 on DirecTV and $60 on In Demand. To compare, WWE Money In the Bank is currently listed for $44.95 on the Dish Network, which does not have AEW up for ordering as of this writing.

It’s worth noting that Chris Jericho was not at the WarnerMedia Upfronts in New York City today with the rest of the AEW crew. As seen in the various shots below, AEW was represented at the Upfronts by Tony Khan, Cody Rhodes, Brandi Rhodes, Kenny Omega, Adam Page, Dr. Britt Baker and The Young Bucks.

Jericho did cut a heel promo to hype the TV deal and his Double Or Nothing match with Omega, which you can also see below. Jericho took credit for the TV deal.

“Congratulations to All Elite Wrestling for signing a television deal with TNT, Time Warner. That’s huge. But keep this in mind, while Kenny Omega and Cody and all the other suck-ups are swarming around Tony Khan and all the executives, all the Warner executives at the Upfronts in New York City, I’m here in the dungeon, in Tampa, training for Double Or Nothing. I don’t have time to put on a suit and tie, Kenny, and go act like a hot shot with a bunch of TV executives. All I have time to do is continue training, so I can beat your ass at Double Or Nothing and get that ‘thank you’ on behalf of AEW for getting that contract in the first place. Don’t forget – when Chris Jericho signed with AEW, TNT signed with AEW. You’re welcome,” Jericho said.

https://twitter.com/AEWrestling/status/1128667944177811457

https://twitter.com/tntdrama/status/1128727588656934912

https://twitter.com/CodyRhodes/status/1128689064239091712

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https://twitter.com/Joe_Staszewski/status/1128668610224971776

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https://twitter.com/MattJackson13/status/1128647701141151744

https://twitter.com/CodyRhodes/status/1128649791217520640

https://twitter.com/TheBrandiRhodes/status/1128652259460558848

https://twitter.com/tntdrama/status/1128632147248668673

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Cody Rhodes Discusses What WWE Is Lacking That AEW Plans To Seize On

As we previously reported, All Elite Wrestling and WarnerMedia officially announced today that AEW will air live on TNT later this year. WarnerMedia will be providing exclusive multi-platform access for fans to watch AEW events, airing live weekly matches on TNT in prime time, as well as streaming them through WarnerMedia’s B/R Live and on pay-per-view.

Cody Rhodes spoke to Variety about the big announcement and discussed his own ten-year run with WWE. Rhodes admitted that while he liked his time with WWE, he felt that “it wasn’t wrestling.” AEW has promised to focus on producing fast-paced, high-impact matches and have less less scripted and soapy drama. AEW stated that wrestlers will also be given more freedom to explore their characters and highlight their athletic abilities.

“[As] much as I say [WWE] was a wonderful job, it wasn’t wrestling,” Rhodes admitted. “That’s something I’ve learned a lot about, the grittiness and the sports-centric element of the industry that doesn’t exist really anywhere else currently. We have the opportunity to seize that.”

WWE Co-President George Barrios was asked this week if WWE considered AEW to be competition. Barrios said that they did, just like they consider the NBA and Kung Fu novels to be competition, because they are all “fighting for people’s time.” Rhodes talked about AEW being a competitor to WWE, and said that it is best for both parties.

“Competition raises everybody’s game,” Rhodes said. “It will raise the wrestlers’ game, the creative people’s game, everybody. Everybody feels a sense of urgency when someone is competing with them.”

“Competitive means being profitable,” he continued. “It doesn’t mean, ‘We have to have this to beat the WWE.’ Our job is not to worry about what WWE is doing, not their TV clearances, not whose in the main event, nothing. With a growing company there are a lot of growing pains. It’s a mix of creative and athletics and a lot of different things. Our focus has to be us, period.”

AEW also officially revealed that they will be presenting statistics by tracking each competitor’s wins and losses, analyzing their moves, assessing damage to their opponents, and providing insights into their winning streaks.

“One thing we really strongly want to present is wins and losses mattering again in pro wrestling. That takes more than the W and the L column,” Rhodes said. “We’re talking about percentage of times someone loses to this particular maneuver, percentages against somebody of this height, a whole by-the-numbers approach that really intrigues me. It’s not a cornerstone of AEW necessarily but it’s a great peripheral element we’re working on and that’s going to be exclusive to us.”

No official date has been announced regarding when the show will start airing on TNT. B/R Live will exclusively stream AEW Double Or Nothing on Saturday, May 25th, while the hour-long live pre-show special, The Buy-In, will stream on WarnerMedia and AEW’s social channels.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

AEW To Officially Air On TNT Later This Year

They had the talent, the events and the money, and now All Elite Wrestling has a TV home. Per a press release, the promotion announced they are partnering with WarnerMedia to air on TNT in prime time later this year.

No specific date for a launch has been discussed, but there could be an update announced during today’s WarnerMedia presentation inside Madison Square Garden.

“All Elite Wrestling is a talent-forward, fan-first league whose inclusive approach to creating high-quality athletic wrestling competitions is already making waves with fans and attracting top-tier wrestlers,” stated EVP of Commercial Operations, Content Strategy and Monetization Michael Quigley. “It is high-adrenaline, gripping entertainment and we can’t wait to bring it to fans everywhere with this game-changing new business.”

B/R Live, a live streaming service from WarnerMedia, will stream all AEW-related events, including Double or Nothing on May 25. “The Buy-In”, an hour-long pre-show, will be available on WarnerMedia and AEW social channels. Matches on that card include the Casino Battle Royal and Kip Sabian v. Sammy Guevara. Streaming on PPV has also been discussed. The event will also be seen in the United Kingdom via ITV.

AEW promises to focus on producing fast-paced, high-impact competitions. They say that they will offer fans less scripted, soapy drama, and more athleticism and real sports analytics, bringing a legitimacy to wrestling that it previously not had. They claim that wrestlers will also be given more freedom to explore their characters and highlight their athletic abilities.

AEW will be presenting statistics for the first time ever in wrestling by tracking each competitor’s wins and losses, analyzing their moves, assessing damage to their opponents, and providing insights into their winning streaks.

“Wrestling fans have wanted – and needed – something different, authentic and better for far too long,” said AEW President and CEO or AEW Tony Khan. “AEW is answering the call. AEW is about more than wrestling. It’s about a movement fueled by wrestling fans who have been underserved and perhaps even disappointed by what the industry has produced in recent years. AEW is rising to the occasion with DOUBLE OR NOTHING and today taking it a step further by partnering with WarnerMedia, which is as committed as we are to making wrestling fans the one and only priority. With WarnerMedia, AEW is poised globally to redefine wrestling as we know it today.”

AEW first became a reality on January 1, 2019 in a Being The Elite segment. This will be the first major wrestling program outside of WWE on TNT since WCW in 2001.

Below is the full press release.

WarnerMedia Partners with All Elite Wrestling for Multi-Platform Launch of Groundbreaking New Wrestling LeagueTNT to Air Weekly Matches Later This Year

Inaugural May 25 Event Available on B/R Live and via Pay-Per-View AEW to Introduce a New Generation of Diverse Wrestlers and Give Fans a New Wrestling Experience for the First Time in 20 Years

May 15, 2019 – WarnerMedia announced today that it is partnering with All Elite Wrestling (AEW), the new professional wrestling promotion featuring a world-class roster of diverse male and female wrestlers, giving fans a new wrestling experience for the first time in 20 years. WarnerMedia and AEW together will build this powerhouse sporting league from the ground up and will begin airing weekly matches later this year. With this league, AEW is introducing a new generation of wrestlers to fans, offering fun, gripping and authentic athletic matches that will make wrestling more accessible to a broad audience. WarnerMedia will utilize its position as a next-generation global media company to build this league into a global pro-wrestling franchise.

Founded by President and CEO Tony Khan, AEW is headlined by members of The Elite, which includes all-star wrestlers The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson), Cody and Brandi Rhodes, Kenny Omega, and Hangman Page, and a roster that includes the legendary Chris Jericho. Omega, Cody and The Young Bucks also serve as executive vice presidents of the company in addition to in-ring talent, and Brandi Rhodes also serves as Chief Brand Officer.

Later this year, WarnerMedia will provide exclusive multi-platform access for fans to watch AEW events, airing live weekly matches on TNT in prime time, as well as streaming them through WarnerMedia’s B/R Live and on pay-per-view. A leading digital sports enterprise, B/R Live’s high fan engagement will provide an invaluable opportunity to build AEW’s audience.

“All Elite Wrestling is a talent-forward, fan-first league whose inclusive approach to creating high-quality athletic wrestling competitions is already making waves with fans and attracting top-tier wrestlers,” said Michael Quigley, executive vice president, commercial operations, content strategy and monetization, TBS and TNT. “It is high-adrenaline, gripping entertainment and we can’t wait to bring it to fans everywhere with this game-changing new business.”

“Wrestling fans have wanted – and needed – something different, authentic and better for far too long,” said Tony Khan, President and CEO of AEW. “AEW is answering the call. AEW is about more than wrestling. It’s about a movement fueled by wrestling fans who have been underserved and perhaps even disappointed by what the industry has produced in recent years. AEW is rising to the occasion with DOUBLE OR NOTHING and today taking it a step further by partnering with WarnerMedia, which is as committed as we are to making wrestling fans the one and only priority. With WarnerMedia, AEW is poised globally to redefine wrestling as we know it today.”

Focused on producing fast-paced, high-impact competitions, AEW offers fans less scripted, soapy drama, and more athleticism and real sports analytics, bringing a legitimacy to wrestling that it has not previously had. Wrestlers will also be given more freedom to explore their characters and highlight their athletic abilities. Introducing statistics to wrestling for the first time ever, AEW will raise the stakes for its matches and deepen fan engagement by tracking each competitor’s wins and losses as the wrestlers pursue championships, analyzing their moves, assessing damage to their opponents, and providing insights into their winning streaks.

B/R Live will serve as the exclusive digital streaming partner in the United States for AEW’s inaugural event, DOUBLE OR NOTHING, on Saturday, May 25, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. DOUBLE OR NOTHING, which sold out in under 30 minutes, features an exhilarating card including the headline clash between Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho; Cody taking on his brother Dustin Rhodes; The Young Bucks battling the Lucha Bros for the AAA World Tag Team Championship; Hangman Adam Page clashing with PAC; and Britt Baker, Nyla Rose and Kylie Rae competing in a three-way match.

Additionally, the hour-long live pre-show special THE BUY-IN will stream on WarnerMedia and AEW’s social channels. THE BUY-IN includes the first ever “Casino (Battle) Royale,” which will see 21 competitors including Jimmy Havoc, Billy Gunn, MJF and Jungle Boy entering the ring in waves of five wrestlers every three minutes followed by one final entrant, lucky number 21, all fighting it out in the ring until there is one winner, whose reward will be a future title shot against the first ever AEW World Champion.

The media rights deal was negotiated by Khan and Bernie Cahill, co-founder of Activist Artists Management, LLC, an entity in which Khan is also an investor and partner.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Former WWE/TNA Veteran Referee Earl Hebner Joins AEW, Former NXT And ROH Referees Also Signed

All Elite Wrestling announced that Earl Hebner, Paul Turner and Aubrey Edwards have signed with the promotion as referees.

Hebner is a veteran referee who is best known for his run with WWE from 1988 through 2005. He made his debut as the evil twin of his real-life brother Dave Hebner on the February 5, 1988 edition of The Main Event, where he was paid off by Ted Dibiase to secretly replace Dave and steal the WWE Championship away from Hulk Hogan. He is probably best remembered for his role as the referee in the Montreal Screwjob, where he called for the bell when Shawn Michaels had then-WWE Champion Bret Hart in a Sharpshooter, despite Hart never submitting. Both Dave and Earl were fired from WWE in 2005 for selling unauthorized WWE merchandise without the company’s knowledge. Earl worked for TNA from 2006 through 2017, and was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2015.

Edwards has been a referee on the independent scene, and also worked briefly in NXT last year as their second-ever female referee.

Turner is a veteran ROH referee who had been with the company since its inception. His profile is still listed on ROH’s website as of this writing.

You can check out the announcements for all three referees below:

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Source: Wrestling Inc.

WWE Reportedly Nixes Stardom Title Match Due To AEW

When it comes to WWE vs. AEW, the former appears to be changing a lot of programs around the world.

Toni Storm made an appearance for Stardom this past weekend. She was supposed to continue the momentum from that show and face Bea Priestley on 5/16 at Korakuen Hall. Priestley just recently won the World of Stardom Title. Stardom then announced that the match wouldn’t be taking place.

There have been issues before with WWE U.K. talent appearing in certain promotions. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, however, WWE were the ones who ended the idea of the match taking place, due to it being their top U.K. Women’s Champion potentially losing against someone from AEW. Priestley was expected to retain the title, making WWE worried about backlash.

Priestley will now defend her title against Hazuki while Toni battles Kagetsu.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

WATCH: Angelico And Jack Evans Announce AEW Signing

AEW’s tag division continues to take shape, as Angelico and Jack Evans announced they’ve signed with the new wrestling company.

As we first reported, Angelico recently signed on the dotted line after there had been interest from WWE in bringing him to the Performance Center.

The South African wrestler shared a video on Thursday in which he talked about the last phase of his career in Europe and what his goals were throughout.

Angelico then explained how he’s grown tired of that phase and made it sound like he might be retiring … but then he gets a call from his tag partner Jack Evans who asks if he’s ready to do this.

The 32-year-old wrestler replies, “the real question is … are they ready for us?” Angelico then signs an All Elite Wrestling contract.

Watch the video below.

https://twitter.com/AngelicoAAA/status/1126509845228580864

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

AEW TV Deal Reportedly “Virtually Done,” Expected To Air On TNT In The Fall

All Elite Wrestling is reportedly “virtually done” making a deal with Turner to air their weekly television show on TNT in the fall.

According to The Wrap, current plans call for select members of the press to make the announcement one hour ahead of next week’s WarnerMedia upfront event. The arrangement made between the parties allegedly calls for a group of reporters to be informed of the deal on an embargoed basis the night before.

AEW President Tony Khan and a group of wrestlers are expected to be in attendance at the pitch to media buyers. The event is taking place at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday at 10 am ET.

The Wrap’s report says current plans call for the AEW TV show to begin on TNT in the fall. As you may recall, Jim Ross previously stated the show would be two hours long.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

AEW Hires Jerry Lynn To Work As A Coach

All Elite Wrestling announced yesterday that they have signed former ECW World Champion, ROH World Champion, WWE Light Heavyweight Champion, TNA X-Division Champion and TNA/NWA Tag Team Champion Jerry Lynn to work as a Coach.

Lynn reacted to the news on Twitter and wrote, “I’m privileged to be a part of AEW!!!”

There’s no word yet on other AEW coaches but names working as Producers, which could be a similar role to what Lynn ends up doing, are Christopher Daniels, Keith Mitchell and BJ Whitmer.

Lynn is a 30+ year veteran of the business who has worked for WWE, WCW, ECW, TNA, ROH and others.

https://twitter.com/AEWrestling/status/1126287707636891648

https://twitter.com/itsjerrylynn/status/1126297875284152325

Source: Wrestling Inc.

Angelico Reportedly Signs With AEW

Former Lucha Underground star, Angelico, has reportedly signed with All Elite Wrestling, according to Pro Wrestling Sheet. An announcement is expected soon for the 32-year old South African wrestler.

The report noted WWE had interest for Angelico to be part of the NXT brand, but didn’t want to get into a bidding war with AEW over him. WWE’s interest has been there for quite some time with reports of their interest surfacing last year.

It actually went back even further with Angelico noting to Metro in 2017 that WWE had made an offer before he signed with Lucha Underground in 2014.

“I can’t really talk about the details, but there was contact made by WWE before we signed with Lucha Underground in 2014 to both me and Jack,” Angelico said. “We talked it over and decided at that time that Lucha Underground were going to take the risk with it because we really believed in the project. We also had the mentality that if WWE were interested in us in 2014 and if every year we’re still getting better as individuals and as a tag-team, why wouldn’t they still want us a few years later a few years on.

“With a few years to play with we went with the Lucha Underground project, which was fun and new. I can’t speak for Jack, but we don’t regret not going, I think he’s happy with the decision he made as am I. Who’s to say we won’t turn up there one day, but with how wrestling is in this day and age it’s great to be a free agent and travel the world.”

Source: Wrestling Inc.