AEW/WBD, Jungle Boy, Randy Orton, and More! – The Wrestling Estate Mailbag Week of May 8, 2023

The Wrestling Estate’s newest weekly series is back! In this week’s mailbag, I answer YOUR burning questions about the goings on in the world of professional wrestling.

If you’d like to have your question answered in future weekly mailbags, feel free to email us at thewrestlingest@gmail.com.

Q: What are your thoughts on the rumored rights deal between AEW and Warner? — Jeff H., The Bay Area

You know the expression: where there’s smoke, there’s fire, and there seems to be a lot of smoke regarding a new deal between AEW and Warner Bros. Discovery. To take a page out of Bruce Prichard‘s playbook, the rumor and innuendo has been in full effect, with baseless, faceless sources peddling rumors that have caught on with the internet wrestling community.

The actual contents of the deal could be announced in the coming days or weeks. Given how AEW likes to pair macro announcements with its pay-per-views, I would expect an announcement to occur closer to Double or Nothing, which takes place in just 13 days. Whatever the announcement is, the news should be overwhelmingly positive for AEW, regardless of whether or not they’re getting a billion dollars from WBD.

It is worth noting that no wrestling company has ever gotten half a million dollars from one network for television rights, WWE included. It’s also worth noting that WBD, like many media conglomerates in 2023, have been cutting costs, and a billion dollar valuation of AEW’s media rights would seem lofty without multiple suitors being involved. Whenever WWE’s media rights deals come up, multiple networks are usually revealed be contenders for shows like Raw and Smackdown, such as Fox, NBCUniversal and even ESPN. If WBD is bidding for AEW against themselves, it does sound like bad business anyway you slice it, which is why I’m skeptical.

Nevertheless, I expect AEW to be getting a nice chunk of change. I think it really speaks volumes about how valuable a wrestling show can be in the modern age. Companies like WWE and AEW pump out hours upon hours of content on a weekly basis, and with that come immense and unique advertising opportunities. It’s not at all unlike reality television. Networks typically use reality television (in MTV’s case, Rob Dyrdek‘s Ridiculousness) to plug holes in their weekly schedules, and wrestling can fill a similar void. That will always have value.

For the fans, the monetary figures should not be the primary concern. The big sticking point as far as AEW fans are concerned is that they are able to land their content library on a streaming platform. Wade Keller of the PWTorch, for what it’s worth, expects AEW content to find a home on the recently rebranded MAX streaming service (formerly HBO MAX). Such a development would be a huge positive for AEW in this writer’s opinion, and as a wrestling fan, what more could you ask for? WWE is always going to be at its strongest when there is another company around to check its power and influence.

Rising tides raise all ships, as it’s said.

Q: In light of all the stories that have come out on Jungle Boy from those conventions, has your opinion of him changed at all? — Alex M., Pasadena, CA

I’ll be honest – my opinion of Jungle Boy hasn’t been quite as high as most pretty much from the get-go. His look, in-ring ability (and certainly for his age) as well as his interesting backstory as the son of a successful actor really gave him a ton of momentum coming into AEW. He was also about as old as most kids are after graduating from college at the time of AEW’s formation, so it was clear he needed seasoning before eventually becoming a top guy.

Four years later, he doesn’t seem to too much better off than he was coming in, and this is after his year-long feud with Christian Cage. At a certain point, I think we, as outside observers (pardon the pun), need to ask ourselves why that is, as there doesn’t seem to have been too much, if any progression to Jungle Boy’s profile as a performer.

I don’t want to make this a huge referendum on Jungle Boy as a performer, because you specifically asked about his attitude at the For The Love of Wrestling Show in Manchester. If you don’t know what this question is alluding to, you can actually watch his Q and A from the event here.

Basically, the most common complaints I’ve seen was that he just looked like he didn’t want to be there and gave flippant answers to the fans in attendance. It’s not just a Jim Cornette narrative either, like some will probably assert, as James Romero of WSI: Wrestling Shoot Interviews was also in attendance and remarked at how small the line was at Jungle Boy’s merch table.

The next thing you’ll probably expect me to say is nobody came to Jungle Boy’s birthday party this year.

Look, I don’t think there’s any way to stretch this other than by saying it’s a bad look at worst. However, if his answers are to be believed, Jungle Boy may be cut from the same cloth as a “Hangman” Adam Page where as a young, moody wrestler with plenty of potential who is also stubborn and not willing to evolve as a performer. John Corrigan suggested he turn heel if all these stories from the convention are believed to be true, but Cornette echoed my point which is that if he is that unwilling to seek out advice and evolve as a talent, he will not have the competency to pull off a heel character with any sort of gusto.

In summation, yes, people have a right to be upset with Jungle Boy, and I do think he needs to take a long look in the mirror about what he needs to evolve this character because he does seem to be visibly disengaged with it in more ways than one.

Q: Do you think Randy Orton will ever wrestle again? — Ian M., Pensacola, FL

I think this question comes in light of recent comments Bob Orton Jr. made over the weekend. Orton, who is the father of Randy Orton, gave a health update on his son, remarking that he has been training but that doctors have advised him to not return. He added that his son is “well taken care” and does not believe his son needs to wrestle again.

I’m with “Cowboy” Bob in that “The Viper” does not need to wrestle again. Randy has accomplished more in one career most wrestlers could hope to achieve in four or five. If you want a rundown of everything Randy Orton has accomplished over his 20+ career in WWE, Google has you covered.

On the other hand, I do think there is value in an Orton return. While I can’t speak to this as I’m merely someone who covers pro wrestling with the written word, I would imagine there is an innate desire for wrestlers to say goodbye on their terms and not a doctor’s. We saw Edge go through this during his impromptu retirement, and it ultimately led to him getting in such physical shape that Dr. Joseph Maroon had no choice but to clear him.

Orton has been nursing a back injury that required major surgery last fall. He has not been seen since.

Now 43, the timetable on an Orton return decision could be looming. Personally, I think there is value in Orton embarking on one last 18-month run that ends at WrestleMania 41 (which is currently rumored to be in Minneapolis). He could wrestle any matches he’d like to have before he calls it quits, put over any talent he wishes to give a run to, and wrestle one final time against a contemporary of his also up against Father Time (IE Edge or John Cena), or settle his years-long issue with Bray Wyatt and The Fiend.

Joking. At least about that last part.

Maybe it’s 12 months. Maybe it’s 12 matches. Either way, I can’t deny that it would be a tremendous honor for Orton to leave wrestling on his own terms. It’s for this reason I believe we will see him again in a WWE ring, but time is of the essence.

You can follow The Wrestling Estate on Twitter @thewrestlingest and Jack Goodwillie @jackgoodwillie.

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