Former RAW figure confirms she held talks with WWE before signing with AEW
AEW has snatched a few notable stars from WWE since 2019, and while names like Renee Paquette aren't performers, some view her signing as a loss for WWE. She recently spoke about her decision to sign with All Elite Wrestling and confirmed prior talks with the Triple H-led promotion.
Before parting ways with WWE, Paquette became a color commentator for NXT. Even after leaving the promotion, she still returned to co-host a SmackDown pre-show and made an appearance for WWE Backstage, making her jump to the Jacksonville-based promotion surprising to some.
During her recent appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Paquette detailed the deal that WWE initially offered her.
"I had been having preliminary conversations with WWE about maybe going back there and just doing pay-per-views or some specials," she said. "And then it dawned on both me and Jon. It makes more sense for me to be in AEW."
Renee Paquette's AEW debut. #AEWDynamite https://t.co/gkY6swI80v
Paquette continued, noting that the exciting nature of the new promotion was a major influence as well.
"Just to see all the things that AEW had to offer us — not only being on the road with my husband but to be a part of this young, upstart, fun [promotion]." (H/T WrestlingInc).
Renee Paquette recently assessed Jon Moxley's All Elite Wrestling career and speculated that the star has been handpicking his opponents due to how much fun he's been having.
Missed out on last week's AEW Dynamite? Catch up with the results before tonight's show right here.
The AEW announcer felt her early foray into commentating was overwhelming
Renee Paquette's tenure as an NXT commentator was well-received online, but according to her own account, it wasn't a smooth transition. While fans were enjoying her presence, it seems that she originally felt overwhelmed by her new role.
#OnThisDayInWWE 10 years ago on #WWENXT:
Renee Young, who had just made her NXT debut the week before, interviews fellow newbie, Sasha Banks
Sasha’s first WWE promo!
@ReneePaquette @MercedesVarnado https://t.co/jY9Vh4M5uJ
During the same interview with Van Vliet, the AEW announcer expressed how she felt WWE threw her into the deep end by putting her on commentary.
"It's not that there's not enough respect put on what commentary needs and to be good at commentary, they do understand that," Paquette said. "But a lot of times they're like, 'Okay well, put Renee on, she'll be good. She's good in these other things, let's put her on commentary.' I was not ready to do commentary." (H/T Ringside News)
It doesn't seem like Paquette initially enjoyed her time as a commentator, but her experience could potentially allow her to take up the role in All Elite Wrestling if the opportunity presented itself.