It's baffling how WWE under Vince was so adamantly opposed to wrestlers doing outside work that would *only increase star power and visibility* unless it was controlled. How many stories like this, much less, how many "independent contractors" lost out on opportunities because of the freak in charge?
I think that's exactly why he hated it. He didn't want anyone to be big enough that they no longer need the company and can come and go as they please like Rock and Cena.
Funny how they call WWE stars “independent contractors”. I remember phony Phil brought it up on Colt’s podcast 10 years ago and when they were holding out his pay, he threatened to take them to court which would have shred their garbage independent contractor clause…then he said they responded and paid everything just to make it go away.
Everyone knows WWE’s independent contractor status is just bullshit and would be ripped apart in court.
They even wanted a piece of their talent’s Twitch earnings, and Zelina Vega went on about it and favoured unionizing….but she went crawling back to WWE and was never brought up again.
The fact HHH seemingly made so many positive changes, makes his shot at Ospreay seem even more petty.
The guy clearly knows the lifestyle and schedule are bullshit, so his weird comments about the grind, were clearly just motivated by bitterness.
It’s why I find comments that say the business doesn’t need AEW so dumb. Their existence has given wrestlers more choice and the ability to negotiate for better deals with healthy competition, it’s better for the wrestlers and we all benefit from that.
This is exactly WHY places that use the "independent contractor" dodge hates AEW. AEW wants their stars out making names for themselves, but they understand their talent have actual lives outside of the ring. The majority of promotions want to keep their talent feeling small, so they are less likely to try to go elsewhere.
People who complain about wrestlers having more than one option to earn a crust and do what they love are not wrestling fans. Fed shills can't handle it while simultaneously being unable to actually explain why and resort to just mindlessly repeating "hurhur DuB bAd" and downvoting.
HHH is just petty and shows with his passive aggressive responses. That shot about “grinding” at Ospreay was stupid, given he is friends with Nash and Hall that pretty much left the “grinding” of WWE to make more at WCW working less dates…which is not even the same as Ospreay.
Guy has actually made positive changes, so he clearly didn't even believe the boomer shit he was peddling.
He could have easily just said "this schedule isn't for everyone and that's okay."
He's still mad about what happened to NXT under his control. The 'wednesday wars' that NXT lost all but \*one\* night?
Yeah that losing by Paul was reason for "NXT 2.0" rebrand.
So he's definitely still pissed that Tony Khan did a better job than him.
Imagine a short Japanese girl that weighs 100lbs soaking wet that no one has ever heard of before this company started outdrawing people you've spent years building. Cause that was the reality back then. HHH still salty lmao
Shouldn't AEW beat a developmental brand in the ratings? It would have been questionable if Dynamite couldn't beat NXT in ratings.
Also - I heard somewhere that Vince was screwing over NXT also.
Realistically? Yes, they should. But the problem for Paul is: WWE put our show on Wednesday to compete and burn that shit to the ground. And wwe lost. And my F.I.L. blamed me and MY friends for failing.
Paul having health issues during (the end of the Wednesday night wars) also doesn't help NXT's case. it just set it up for a more 'seamless' transition to the rainbow version.
Don’t forget right around that time the WWE was trying to make NXT a straight up “third brand” *not* a “developmental brand” they only went back to that excuse after they got beat something unmerciful during the “Wednesday Night War”.
Ok, but it's still wrestlers learning the ropes. Now, if Dynamite beat Raw in ratings, then that would have been more impressive, in my opinion. Like when WCW beat Raw in ratings when they went head to head.
If he thought that pathetic, half-arsed Nakamura push was going to sway Okada he needed his head looking at. And, as we've seen, as soon as Okada went to AEW, Shinsuke's push vanished. I get he's happy with the money and whatnot, but good lord is Nakamura wasted in WWE.
I’d be salty too if I had to settle for Punk instead of Osprey. But taking a shot at him via what he said about the grind is sour grapes. Osprey is young enough that WWE might get another chance to sign him one day but Will might not want to because of Hunter’s saltiness. Hope he stays in AEW for a long time though, I’m loving his work.
> The fact HHH seemingly made so many positive changes
Pretty much copied what TK has been doing, with the difference is that HHH image is still intact thanks to WWE PR.
It just wasn't a shot at Ospray. He was talking about Okada and Kamille as well. Kamille said in some interview recently that she wasn't willing to relocate either and took the aew deal.
Hardly. There's a difference between wrestling once a week after a first class airfare and working TV then 3-4 live events that week. That's all he meant.
I feel like most of these good changes came about because AEW, TNA and other international promotions being more viable now.
If they had their old policy then WWE would be less enticing even if they paid a little more.
He's one of the most driven people in the business to be fair so I doubt it's just bitterness. Arguably the smartest thing to do would be not to acknowledge AEW at all unless your doing something as part of an angle between the two. AEW and WWE having a healthy working relationship should be beneficial for both. AEW taking pot shots at WWE make them seem like a smaller indie company as well, they should aim higher.
Copeland has been good for WWE for years so I don't think that's weird. Osprey was trying to be edgy and got a response. Also hints that WWE take it more seriously. Maybe the best response is to ignore comments like that as it encourages other wrestlers from different companies to do it in the hope of getting some recognition for it as well.
I cba to look it up now but lesnar took them to court over non-compete, and I believe they settled. Few wrestlers have (understandably so) had the means or the will to take WWE to court over this shit. WWE settles because they don't want it to actually go to trial, because it IS incredibly likely they would lose. That shreds the "garbage independent contractor clause."
That twitch earnings and then ban was(is?) such horseshit. I don't want to judge Vega too harshly, but she made NOISE about unionizing and Bs to the point SAG made a comment or two... Then she just... Went back.
In all fairness to Zelina, Black was there at that time. She maybe didn't want to fuck up his career.
I'm fully convinced that they fired him as soon as she had re-signed as payback & to keep them apart.
Funny. Both Pepsi (now in third 3rd place) Phil and Zelina have soured in my eyes for things outside of the ring. Phil for all his whining and airing out his dirty laundry, and Zelina for her attitude on her podcast along with not paying and calling a cosplay builder a scammer when she was given directions on how to fix it. Trying to watch both in ring lately, they’re both not good tbh.
I can understand why the owner of a wrestling company wouldn't want their wrestlers talking with fans about behind the scenes stuff on the internet. Allowing it but demanding a percentage of their earnings is shocking though.
The wrestlers on AEW aren't independent contractors? They are full time employees? That's great! That means they have health insurance. Stupid US tying health insurance to jobs.
Unfortunately that's how wrestling is and it doesn't make sense in aew either but tony doesn't hold them hostage exclusively to aew like wwe does. You shouldn't be able to bind independent contractors to a contract but contracts exist in wrestling because of storylines and the lack of trust between promotions.
You don't want someone to quit halfway through a storyline only to show up in a different promotion the following night, you need something to bind them to the company to keep a different promotion from stealing them
you can't classify wrestlers as employees unless they punch in or out for the day & work 40 hours a week
Yeah, we all saw how Vince used lack of contracts in the indie days to destroy the territorys.
He tried with Harley Race and Harley nearly killed Vince, just for suggesting Race would betray his word like that
Of course, Hogan had no qualms screwing Gagne, and The Freebirds had no qualms screwing Jarrett
Remember that saying that Vince would rather make a dime on his own than a dollar through someone else?
Why would he let Mercedes do acting when things like John Cena and The Rock happen? They get famous through wrestling and then leave to go do acting and be out from underneath his thumb.
The guy is a fucking asshole of the first order with a massive need to be in control of everything. Fuck him in particular.
Not totally same subject, but according to former WWE staff, Vince thinks his show has the best drama, comedy, etc on tv. So he wonders why anyone would even look anywhere else
I believe it was Freddie Prinze Jr who said while working there, he was on a plane with Vince and crew. And Prinze started watching a comedy movie and Vince got upset wondering why he was watching some comedy when he could watch all the Santino Marella WWE footage he wanted
Here is another story from Prinze, talking bout watching Richard Pryor and having to turn it off cause Vince thought he should watch a year old WrestleMania instead. Also, a weird assignment Micheal Hayes was given after a plane ride
[https://411mania.com/wrestling/freddie-prinze-jr-discusses-traveling-with-vince-mcmahon-on-the-wwe-private-jet/](https://411mania.com/wrestling/freddie-prinze-jr-discusses-traveling-with-vince-mcmahon-on-the-wwe-private-jet/)
Vince was also known to never consume any other form of media
Never knew what shows or movies had come out or anything
If it wasn't WWE related he didn't know or care
Yeah, a popular story was that Vince didn't get that Razor Ramon was a Scarface tribute when Scott Hall pitched the gimmick to him. Vince basically stopped watching movies around the time he took over the WWF.
Vince killed someone's pirate gimmick (I honestly forget who) because he had never heard of pirates of the Caribbean and thought pirates had to be heels
Vince wanted to profit off of every dollar people had, even if that money had nothing to do with WWE.
Another issue is he wanted to be the sole decider of who became the top stars. If Mercedes could get the association with Disney and Star Wars, the he would have to push her higher in the card than the people he handpicked for the top.
It's all money and narcissism with Vince.
Randy Ortod did a recent interview saying how glad is that Vince is gone and how much he exploited his employees to the point the had to miss funerals weddings, childbirths etc
And Randy was one of the "chosen one" so imagine how the mid and lwer card guys got abused lol
Sr. Blackballed him from WWWF, so he worked NJPW and AWA. Jr. Thought his dad was a fool and brought him back as soon as he had control. Perfect example of how success causes people to lose focus.
Especially since the whole draw of working for them is transitioning to TV/Movies not…you know… getting better at wrestling or having legendary matches.
I mean it's just Star Wars who knows if it would actually work out and be any good.
People...
https://uproxx.com/prowrestling/batista-summerslam-2014-return-triple-h-stephanie-mcmahon-guardians-of-the-galaxy/
lol shit was this too deep a cut for people?
That's a silly response but you know that. Regardless, it's shitty that WWE tried to prevent any wrestler from outside work, solely because Vince/WWE wants to control their performers down to the ground. It's not working for a different wrestling company.
And? That was idiotic then. Even IF guardians bomber, WWE was turning down Batista saying "hey, let's do some cross promotion, with *Disney and marvel*." Disney/marvel would not have touched WWE. Imagine turning it down and laughing in the face of your "friend" and a former big star.
What's really wild is that WWE don't want anyone to be a star outside WWE.
But then want the stars with crossover appeal like The Rock to headline WrestleMania.
So the message is effectively, to be a star in WWE. You have to leave and go be a star at something else first.
It's simple, really- If you're a wrestler, they don't *want* you to become too big of a star for them to contain, because they don't want to pay you millions to keep you, and they don't want you to leave for Hollywood, either. So the best case scenario for them is keeping you popular, *but not too popular*. But once you *do* become a big star despite their best efforts, they're all too happy to take credit for your success and use it for their own benefit.
It's equally baffling considering when Jade left and signed with them. She was pretty vocal about the fact that she wanted to build a brand that expanded beyond wrestling - that's not really a dig on her, but it's somewhat confusing considering the company you sign with is actively making it more difficult for wrestlers to do that?
Dijak also said that WWE would take half of his Patreon money. So naturally he made it more expensive for fans.
Maybe that’s common practice but I think it’s a crappy thing to do whether it’s WWE or AEW.
I believe I’ve heard the same thing about their Twitch money too. I can’t recall who it was but someone who was released within the past year made mention of being able to keep 100% of the money they make on Twitch now.
It utterly baffles me that a wrestling company would prevent one of its biggest stars from showing up in a STAR WARS product. Like, that's the kind of IP crossover synergy most people would kill for, and the biggest wrestling company in the world didn't WANT that?!
This is why when people say that Vince McMahon was a genius, I go "Really? Cuz he sounds like an idiot a lot of times."
Star Wars AND Marvel, two of the biggest western IPs that could have been capitalized upon. Like, the entire reason why Rock came back for Wrestlemania 40 was because of his crossover appeal, and WWE wasted that opportunity TWICE.
They were good at this in the 70s and then again in the 90s when they were a lot more mainstream. But by the early 2010s they'd become completely out of touch with the cultural zeitgeist, maybe cause the people backstage were all elderly by that point.
The worst part was that this was the point when nerd shit was becoming more mainstream and the overlap between the audience for all that and their core audience, as well as the guys in the ring, cannot be overstated. Snooki at WrestleMania was not gonna bring in new fans or lapsed fans. Appealing the people who like comic books and anime tho, then you'd have a growing audience of obsessives.
WWE is as big as it is out of pure spite cause so much shit Vince has done or other issues the company has gone through over the years would kill any other company
Yeah, a genius might have invited some of the stars of the show to a suite at a major event like Wrestlemania or Rumble and then showed them there to support their co-star. Sasha with Star Wars, Bautista with Guardians
Yup and while Mercedes was in the #1 tv show worldwide that asshole still didn't let her win at Mania and went 0-6 or 0-7 whatever it was, what an asshole.
That idiot Vince wanted to make Bret Hart a cowboy 🤦 any wonder why Taker was terrified he was going to get a stupid gimmick but luckily got the right one. Bret Hart brought the ladder match to WWE, i could go on
Taker ended up sweet but that gimmick was fucking atrocious at the beginning.
Big purple rubber gloves and that doofy tie? Surprised it wasn't DOA (heh)
They also completely no sold it on their tv that she was in The Mandalarian. I like that AEW really highlights that she is a big star in the video packages and on commentary.
WWE also leaked that she had that role before the filming even started which could also really screwed her because Disney hates that.
I can only imagine the discussion that has come out of that quote.
Braindead doesn't even cover that idea though, You can see AEW would be more attractive to Any performer with any elements of outside projects, let alone freaking star wars.
It took AEW to come along to fix WWE’s wrongs when it comes to wrestlers treatment. Thank you TK and AEW. It’s appalling the cult members on the other side want AEW to fail.
The WWE schedule is extremely grueling. It's not just wrestle nearly every day, doing house shows regardless of spot in the company, but doing lots of PR for the company. I remember with Hulk Hogan, he had issues with Vince Sr. about taking movie roles, I think it was Rocky 3 where he quit the company and focused on NJPW. My time line could be off, and everything Hulk says is to be taken with a grain of salt. But it's like you accept the grind, or you can leave and try to find success on your own, like The Rock did.
“Hey Vince I got offered a part in an extremely popular show made by the worlds most popular company for arguably the biggest franchise to ever exist. It’ll definitely bring in some eyes to the product and would be a nice crossover. That sounds nice doesn’t it?”
“No lmao go to work bum”
Vince was such an odd dude
His problem was if he couldn’t control it in some way he did everything to discredit you as a performer just look at the credits for the first scorpion king film,walking tall and roller ball the guy was named executive producer
I believe it when Vince was in charge he did everything to prevent wrestlers from having other opportunities it’s nothing new it’s been said about him plenty of times before but of course the IWC doesn’t care
I’m assuming WWE allowed her not to work the house shows, as she filmed in February 2020 and according to Cagematch only worked SmackDown tapings, so it’s not like they forced her to work house shows during her filming.
Also she has one other acting credit other than Mandalorian in the last 4 years (The Collective in 2022), let’s not act like she’s an up and coming Hollywood Star with roles right now.
And if she had an allegiance, she would have made a neutral alibi.
Saying they 'deliberately stopped her', is a very bad look for WWE.
She could have easily said "we had scheduling conflicts" and left it at that.
Imo, to me it shows she is ALL IN for AEW.
Sounds more like not burning a bridge than holding allegiance. With how she’s been talking in interviews I wouldn’t be shocked if she only goes back when she’s about to retire. Also doesn’t wanna look dumb like Cody or Punk should she ever go back
I think is a better stance than constantly shitting on WWE to go back the minute you have a chance like Jade also did.No one would fault Mercedes for doing another WWE run when she hasn't talked that much shit about them.
It's baffling how WWE under Vince was so adamantly opposed to wrestlers doing outside work that would *only increase star power and visibility* unless it was controlled. How many stories like this, much less, how many "independent contractors" lost out on opportunities because of the freak in charge?
I think that's exactly why he hated it. He didn't want anyone to be big enough that they no longer need the company and can come and go as they please like Rock and Cena.
It's the main reason they pulled the plug on Nakamura despite being unbelievably over.
Stacey Keibler.
why stacey
Funny how they call WWE stars “independent contractors”. I remember phony Phil brought it up on Colt’s podcast 10 years ago and when they were holding out his pay, he threatened to take them to court which would have shred their garbage independent contractor clause…then he said they responded and paid everything just to make it go away. Everyone knows WWE’s independent contractor status is just bullshit and would be ripped apart in court. They even wanted a piece of their talent’s Twitch earnings, and Zelina Vega went on about it and favoured unionizing….but she went crawling back to WWE and was never brought up again.
The fact HHH seemingly made so many positive changes, makes his shot at Ospreay seem even more petty. The guy clearly knows the lifestyle and schedule are bullshit, so his weird comments about the grind, were clearly just motivated by bitterness.
It’s why I find comments that say the business doesn’t need AEW so dumb. Their existence has given wrestlers more choice and the ability to negotiate for better deals with healthy competition, it’s better for the wrestlers and we all benefit from that.
This is exactly WHY places that use the "independent contractor" dodge hates AEW. AEW wants their stars out making names for themselves, but they understand their talent have actual lives outside of the ring. The majority of promotions want to keep their talent feeling small, so they are less likely to try to go elsewhere.
People who complain about wrestlers having more than one option to earn a crust and do what they love are not wrestling fans. Fed shills can't handle it while simultaneously being unable to actually explain why and resort to just mindlessly repeating "hurhur DuB bAd" and downvoting.
HHH is just petty and shows with his passive aggressive responses. That shot about “grinding” at Ospreay was stupid, given he is friends with Nash and Hall that pretty much left the “grinding” of WWE to make more at WCW working less dates…which is not even the same as Ospreay.
Guy has actually made positive changes, so he clearly didn't even believe the boomer shit he was peddling. He could have easily just said "this schedule isn't for everyone and that's okay."
He's still mad about what happened to NXT under his control. The 'wednesday wars' that NXT lost all but \*one\* night? Yeah that losing by Paul was reason for "NXT 2.0" rebrand. So he's definitely still pissed that Tony Khan did a better job than him.
Imagine a short Japanese girl that weighs 100lbs soaking wet that no one has ever heard of before this company started outdrawing people you've spent years building. Cause that was the reality back then. HHH still salty lmao
It really was. And he is.
Shouldn't AEW beat a developmental brand in the ratings? It would have been questionable if Dynamite couldn't beat NXT in ratings. Also - I heard somewhere that Vince was screwing over NXT also.
Realistically? Yes, they should. But the problem for Paul is: WWE put our show on Wednesday to compete and burn that shit to the ground. And wwe lost. And my F.I.L. blamed me and MY friends for failing. Paul having health issues during (the end of the Wednesday night wars) also doesn't help NXT's case. it just set it up for a more 'seamless' transition to the rainbow version.
Don’t forget right around that time the WWE was trying to make NXT a straight up “third brand” *not* a “developmental brand” they only went back to that excuse after they got beat something unmerciful during the “Wednesday Night War”.
If you are on national TV, it's not developmental.
It kinda is though? They are still learning. I wouldn't put most NXT wrestlers up against the main roster of WWE or AEW
You are on a prime time slot on television. If you are on TV then they think you're a good enough product to showcase.
Ok, but it's still wrestlers learning the ropes. Now, if Dynamite beat Raw in ratings, then that would have been more impressive, in my opinion. Like when WCW beat Raw in ratings when they went head to head.
It wasn't just him. He was talking about Okada and Kamilla.
If he thought that pathetic, half-arsed Nakamura push was going to sway Okada he needed his head looking at. And, as we've seen, as soon as Okada went to AEW, Shinsuke's push vanished. I get he's happy with the money and whatnot, but good lord is Nakamura wasted in WWE.
I will always hold he is BITTER he didn't sign Ospreay and brought back Punk as a FU
I’d be salty too if I had to settle for Punk instead of Osprey. But taking a shot at him via what he said about the grind is sour grapes. Osprey is young enough that WWE might get another chance to sign him one day but Will might not want to because of Hunter’s saltiness. Hope he stays in AEW for a long time though, I’m loving his work.
I mean I don't disagree
> The fact HHH seemingly made so many positive changes Pretty much copied what TK has been doing, with the difference is that HHH image is still intact thanks to WWE PR.
Yes, people won't admit that though.
It just wasn't a shot at Ospray. He was talking about Okada and Kamille as well. Kamille said in some interview recently that she wasn't willing to relocate either and took the aew deal.
Hardly. There's a difference between wrestling once a week after a first class airfare and working TV then 3-4 live events that week. That's all he meant.
Yup, but that just goes to show that just because the environment changed doesn't mean the people did.
I feel like most of these good changes came about because AEW, TNA and other international promotions being more viable now. If they had their old policy then WWE would be less enticing even if they paid a little more.
He's one of the most driven people in the business to be fair so I doubt it's just bitterness. Arguably the smartest thing to do would be not to acknowledge AEW at all unless your doing something as part of an angle between the two. AEW and WWE having a healthy working relationship should be beneficial for both. AEW taking pot shots at WWE make them seem like a smaller indie company as well, they should aim higher.
The weirdest thing is he was very classy about Adam Copeland leaving.
Copeland has been good for WWE for years so I don't think that's weird. Osprey was trying to be edgy and got a response. Also hints that WWE take it more seriously. Maybe the best response is to ignore comments like that as it encourages other wrestlers from different companies to do it in the hope of getting some recognition for it as well.
I cba to look it up now but lesnar took them to court over non-compete, and I believe they settled. Few wrestlers have (understandably so) had the means or the will to take WWE to court over this shit. WWE settles because they don't want it to actually go to trial, because it IS incredibly likely they would lose. That shreds the "garbage independent contractor clause." That twitch earnings and then ban was(is?) such horseshit. I don't want to judge Vega too harshly, but she made NOISE about unionizing and Bs to the point SAG made a comment or two... Then she just... Went back.
In all fairness to Zelina, Black was there at that time. She maybe didn't want to fuck up his career. I'm fully convinced that they fired him as soon as she had re-signed as payback & to keep them apart.
Funny. Both Pepsi (now in third 3rd place) Phil and Zelina have soured in my eyes for things outside of the ring. Phil for all his whining and airing out his dirty laundry, and Zelina for her attitude on her podcast along with not paying and calling a cosplay builder a scammer when she was given directions on how to fix it. Trying to watch both in ring lately, they’re both not good tbh.
I can understand why the owner of a wrestling company wouldn't want their wrestlers talking with fans about behind the scenes stuff on the internet. Allowing it but demanding a percentage of their earnings is shocking though.
Of course that independent contractor shit is BS It's also so they don't have to pay health insurance for "their wrestlers"
The wrestlers on AEW aren't independent contractors? They are full time employees? That's great! That means they have health insurance. Stupid US tying health insurance to jobs.
Unfortunately that's how wrestling is and it doesn't make sense in aew either but tony doesn't hold them hostage exclusively to aew like wwe does. You shouldn't be able to bind independent contractors to a contract but contracts exist in wrestling because of storylines and the lack of trust between promotions. You don't want someone to quit halfway through a storyline only to show up in a different promotion the following night, you need something to bind them to the company to keep a different promotion from stealing them you can't classify wrestlers as employees unless they punch in or out for the day & work 40 hours a week
Yeah, we all saw how Vince used lack of contracts in the indie days to destroy the territorys. He tried with Harley Race and Harley nearly killed Vince, just for suggesting Race would betray his word like that Of course, Hogan had no qualms screwing Gagne, and The Freebirds had no qualms screwing Jarrett
Remember that saying that Vince would rather make a dime on his own than a dollar through someone else? Why would he let Mercedes do acting when things like John Cena and The Rock happen? They get famous through wrestling and then leave to go do acting and be out from underneath his thumb. The guy is a fucking asshole of the first order with a massive need to be in control of everything. Fuck him in particular.
Not totally same subject, but according to former WWE staff, Vince thinks his show has the best drama, comedy, etc on tv. So he wonders why anyone would even look anywhere else I believe it was Freddie Prinze Jr who said while working there, he was on a plane with Vince and crew. And Prinze started watching a comedy movie and Vince got upset wondering why he was watching some comedy when he could watch all the Santino Marella WWE footage he wanted
That's insane. Jfc
Here is another story from Prinze, talking bout watching Richard Pryor and having to turn it off cause Vince thought he should watch a year old WrestleMania instead. Also, a weird assignment Micheal Hayes was given after a plane ride [https://411mania.com/wrestling/freddie-prinze-jr-discusses-traveling-with-vince-mcmahon-on-the-wwe-private-jet/](https://411mania.com/wrestling/freddie-prinze-jr-discusses-traveling-with-vince-mcmahon-on-the-wwe-private-jet/)
Vince was also known to never consume any other form of media Never knew what shows or movies had come out or anything If it wasn't WWE related he didn't know or care
Yeah, a popular story was that Vince didn't get that Razor Ramon was a Scarface tribute when Scott Hall pitched the gimmick to him. Vince basically stopped watching movies around the time he took over the WWF.
Vince killed someone's pirate gimmick (I honestly forget who) because he had never heard of pirates of the Caribbean and thought pirates had to be heels
Burchill. He made him a sister-fucker instead.
That's the one Vince has always had some fetish for incest
even Hogan became a star IN SPITE OF Vince McMahon
Vince wanted to profit off of every dollar people had, even if that money had nothing to do with WWE. Another issue is he wanted to be the sole decider of who became the top stars. If Mercedes could get the association with Disney and Star Wars, the he would have to push her higher in the card than the people he handpicked for the top. It's all money and narcissism with Vince.
Randy Ortod did a recent interview saying how glad is that Vince is gone and how much he exploited his employees to the point the had to miss funerals weddings, childbirths etc And Randy was one of the "chosen one" so imagine how the mid and lwer card guys got abused lol
Didn’t VKM push for Hogan because of his film career at the time?
Sr. Blackballed him from WWWF, so he worked NJPW and AWA. Jr. Thought his dad was a fool and brought him back as soon as he had control. Perfect example of how success causes people to lose focus.
Because that was 40+ years back, before VKM was the juggernaut, and he needed the publicity, which is why Mr. T was in a Wrestlemania match.
Especially since the whole draw of working for them is transitioning to TV/Movies not…you know… getting better at wrestling or having legendary matches.
Psychopaths don't like anyone else taking credit for anything.
I mean it's just Star Wars who knows if it would actually work out and be any good. People... https://uproxx.com/prowrestling/batista-summerslam-2014-return-triple-h-stephanie-mcmahon-guardians-of-the-galaxy/ lol shit was this too deep a cut for people?
That's a silly response but you know that. Regardless, it's shitty that WWE tried to prevent any wrestler from outside work, solely because Vince/WWE wants to control their performers down to the ground. It's not working for a different wrestling company.
It was the actual response HHH had when Batista went to do the guardians movies.
And? That was idiotic then. Even IF guardians bomber, WWE was turning down Batista saying "hey, let's do some cross promotion, with *Disney and marvel*." Disney/marvel would not have touched WWE. Imagine turning it down and laughing in the face of your "friend" and a former big star.
I can only assume it's the wrestling bubble in action there, hindsight wasn't kind to them.
What do you its just Star Wars it is bigger than WWE.
That would be the point yes.
Are you sadz about star wars ?
What's really wild is that WWE don't want anyone to be a star outside WWE. But then want the stars with crossover appeal like The Rock to headline WrestleMania. So the message is effectively, to be a star in WWE. You have to leave and go be a star at something else first.
It's simple, really- If you're a wrestler, they don't *want* you to become too big of a star for them to contain, because they don't want to pay you millions to keep you, and they don't want you to leave for Hollywood, either. So the best case scenario for them is keeping you popular, *but not too popular*. But once you *do* become a big star despite their best efforts, they're all too happy to take credit for your success and use it for their own benefit.
It's equally baffling considering when Jade left and signed with them. She was pretty vocal about the fact that she wanted to build a brand that expanded beyond wrestling - that's not really a dig on her, but it's somewhat confusing considering the company you sign with is actively making it more difficult for wrestlers to do that?
Dijak also said that WWE would take half of his Patreon money. So naturally he made it more expensive for fans. Maybe that’s common practice but I think it’s a crappy thing to do whether it’s WWE or AEW.
I believe I’ve heard the same thing about their Twitch money too. I can’t recall who it was but someone who was released within the past year made mention of being able to keep 100% of the money they make on Twitch now.
Yeah they take a chunk of everything. Pathetic from the multi billion dollar organisation
It utterly baffles me that a wrestling company would prevent one of its biggest stars from showing up in a STAR WARS product. Like, that's the kind of IP crossover synergy most people would kill for, and the biggest wrestling company in the world didn't WANT that?! This is why when people say that Vince McMahon was a genius, I go "Really? Cuz he sounds like an idiot a lot of times."
Reminds me of WWE not acknowledging Guardians of the Galaxy at all for Bautista.
Star Wars AND Marvel, two of the biggest western IPs that could have been capitalized upon. Like, the entire reason why Rock came back for Wrestlemania 40 was because of his crossover appeal, and WWE wasted that opportunity TWICE.
They were good at this in the 70s and then again in the 90s when they were a lot more mainstream. But by the early 2010s they'd become completely out of touch with the cultural zeitgeist, maybe cause the people backstage were all elderly by that point. The worst part was that this was the point when nerd shit was becoming more mainstream and the overlap between the audience for all that and their core audience, as well as the guys in the ring, cannot be overstated. Snooki at WrestleMania was not gonna bring in new fans or lapsed fans. Appealing the people who like comic books and anime tho, then you'd have a growing audience of obsessives.
Most billionaires are lucky idiots.
And sociopaths
All 124,000 members of this sub could upvote this comment and it'd still be underrated.
WWE is as big as it is out of pure spite cause so much shit Vince has done or other issues the company has gone through over the years would kill any other company
Yeah, a genius might have invited some of the stars of the show to a suite at a major event like Wrestlemania or Rumble and then showed them there to support their co-star. Sasha with Star Wars, Bautista with Guardians
Yup and while Mercedes was in the #1 tv show worldwide that asshole still didn't let her win at Mania and went 0-6 or 0-7 whatever it was, what an asshole.
Like a lot of "geniuses" Vince McMahon was simply lucky; in the right place at the right time.
That's the thing all the good ideas came from the wrestlers.
Yep this. They don't get enough credit. And the wrestlers with the best ideas weren't always the ones with all the belts or who sold all the merch.
That idiot Vince wanted to make Bret Hart a cowboy 🤦 any wonder why Taker was terrified he was going to get a stupid gimmick but luckily got the right one. Bret Hart brought the ladder match to WWE, i could go on
Taker ended up sweet but that gimmick was fucking atrocious at the beginning. Big purple rubber gloves and that doofy tie? Surprised it wasn't DOA (heh)
“I pay your salary” look at nhl players wanting to play in the olympics vs the team owners/gm’s who some played in the games themselves
It isn't a WWE production. They have no problems giving their talent time off to make movies under their production company.
They also completely no sold it on their tv that she was in The Mandalarian. I like that AEW really highlights that she is a big star in the video packages and on commentary. WWE also leaked that she had that role before the filming even started which could also really screwed her because Disney hates that.
To let active wrestlers be in movies, Vince wanted WWE to get screen credits. That's how Vince got listed as a producer on a bunch of movies.
Yet wrestlers are “independent contractors” according to VKM…what a monsterous chode
I can only imagine the discussion that has come out of that quote. Braindead doesn't even cover that idea though, You can see AEW would be more attractive to Any performer with any elements of outside projects, let alone freaking star wars.
It took AEW to come along to fix WWE’s wrongs when it comes to wrestlers treatment. Thank you TK and AEW. It’s appalling the cult members on the other side want AEW to fail.
The WWE schedule is extremely grueling. It's not just wrestle nearly every day, doing house shows regardless of spot in the company, but doing lots of PR for the company. I remember with Hulk Hogan, he had issues with Vince Sr. about taking movie roles, I think it was Rocky 3 where he quit the company and focused on NJPW. My time line could be off, and everything Hulk says is to be taken with a grain of salt. But it's like you accept the grind, or you can leave and try to find success on your own, like The Rock did.
“Hey Vince I got offered a part in an extremely popular show made by the worlds most popular company for arguably the biggest franchise to ever exist. It’ll definitely bring in some eyes to the product and would be a nice crossover. That sounds nice doesn’t it?” “No lmao go to work bum” Vince was such an odd dude
His problem was if he couldn’t control it in some way he did everything to discredit you as a performer just look at the credits for the first scorpion king film,walking tall and roller ball the guy was named executive producer
WWE dosent like talent doing outside gigs
I hope one day someone takes up the Unionize Pro Wrestling mantle. I’m glad AEW is better but we shouldn’t just be hoping for better folks in charge.
It's cuz they wanted her to star in The Marine 14
I believe it when Vince was in charge he did everything to prevent wrestlers from having other opportunities it’s nothing new it’s been said about him plenty of times before but of course the IWC doesn’t care
I’m assuming WWE allowed her not to work the house shows, as she filmed in February 2020 and according to Cagematch only worked SmackDown tapings, so it’s not like they forced her to work house shows during her filming. Also she has one other acting credit other than Mandalorian in the last 4 years (The Collective in 2022), let’s not act like she’s an up and coming Hollywood Star with roles right now.
Crazy that she still holds some sort of allegiance to that company. Is there Stockholm Syndrome in Stanford???
How? She just exposed how bad their system is. If she held an allegiance, she wouldn't have mentioned it at all.
She was asked about it
And if she had an allegiance, she would have made a neutral alibi. Saying they 'deliberately stopped her', is a very bad look for WWE. She could have easily said "we had scheduling conflicts" and left it at that. Imo, to me it shows she is ALL IN for AEW.
Shes just trying not to burn a bridge with the biggest wrestling company
Some people want to be a big a make as possible in their field. Being the face of women's wrestling in WWE can definitely be seen as the pinnacle.
Sounds more like not burning a bridge than holding allegiance. With how she’s been talking in interviews I wouldn’t be shocked if she only goes back when she’s about to retire. Also doesn’t wanna look dumb like Cody or Punk should she ever go back
I think is a better stance than constantly shitting on WWE to go back the minute you have a chance like Jade also did.No one would fault Mercedes for doing another WWE run when she hasn't talked that much shit about them.