WWE has had its share of questionable angles and segments, from Katie Vick to Kurt Angle & Sharmell. In 2016, one segment left a current AEW star feeling very uncomfortable but was thankfully changed before it made it to TV.
In the Rolling Stone article ‘Inside the WWE Writers Room, ‘A Kingdom Ruled by Fear’, the publication delves deep into the environment within WWE’s creative team. One example given comes from a segment planned for the January, 18, 2016, episode of WWE Monday Night Raw that aired on Martin Luther King Day.
Former creative team member Michael Leonardi recalled working on a segment that would have featured Mark Henry, Titus O’Neill, R-Truth, and Neville (now AEW’s Pac.) Leonardi described how the original script had Neville, a white wrestler, say, “I’ve got a dream too, and that dream is to win the Royal Rumble,” a direct reference to Dr. King’s iconic speech.
Neville felt incredibly uncomfortable about delivering the line. Due to time constraints and the fact that they were in the middle of taping, Leonardi made a quick adjustment to the script. Instead of Neville, the line was reassigned to R-Truth. This change happened on the fly, and the segment aired as planned.
This is just one of many examples of how WWE under Vince McMahon sparked controversies, often with the writing team being forced to work with ideas they did not personally agree with. Last year, a former writer alleged that several racist and offensive storylines were pitched, including Mansoor being responsible for 9/11. Now, McMahon’s is gone from WWE, and for those on the creative team, they’re likely breathing a heavy sign of relief that the 79-year-old’s era is a thing of the past.
