"I don't see them ever being as big as they were with him" - Former WWE star comments on Dark Order's potential without Brodie Lee
A former WWE Superstar recently shared his take on the potential of AEW's Dark Order without Brodie Lee, who led the faction to glory in 2020. The superstar in question is Eric Rowan.
Eric Rowan was a member of the Bray Wyatt-led faction, named The Wyatt Family in WWE. The group also included Brodie Lee (FKA Luke Harper). Rowan also teamed with Harper as the Bludgeon Brothers and held Tag Team gold in WWE. After his release from the Stamford-based company in December 2019, Brodie joined All Elite Wrestling and was revealed as the previously unseen leader of the Dark Order, referred to as The Exalted One.
During an interview on INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet, Eric Rowan said his career was always intertwined with Brodie Lee. He added that the duo strived to create something for themselves and that he would never want to join The Dark Order in AEW as it was Brodie's legacy.
"And we had fought so hard to like, get out of each other's shadows for so long, because we were always connected. And we wanted something for ourselves. And to see him start to get something for himself and for me to be able to branch off and do stuff for myself. Like, those were great conversations to have, you know, and as far as like, after he passes, like, I wouldn't want anything to do with Dark Order, ever," Eric Rowan said. (H/T - chrisvanvliet.com)
The 41-year-old said that Brodie Lee took the faction to incredible heights during his short tenure in the Jacksonville-based company and predicted that the faction would never be able to achieve what it did with him at its helm.
"And it's not because I don't think those guys are cool. It's because that was his legacy. He created that in such a short amount of time, he made them something very special. And nobody should try to replace that. And those guys do good by honouring him, but I don't see them ever being as big as they were with him," Rowan added. (H/T -chrisvanvliet.com)
Eric Rowan was released by WWE in 2020 as part of budget cuts, following which he had a few appearances in the independent circuit and AEW under the name Eric Redbeard.
Eric Redbeard appeared on WWE SmackDown to pay tribute to Bray Wyatt
Bray Wyatt (real name Windham Rotunda) was considered to be one of the most creative minds in professional wrestling. He was able to get over with the WWE fans due to his innovation and out-of-the-box thinking.
However, the leader of the Wyatt Family sadly passed away in August 2023 at the young age of 36, after suffering from a heart attack while asleep. WWE paid tribute to the Eater of Worlds and Terry Funk, who passed away on August 23, on the August 25 edition of SmackDown.
During the show, Eric Redbeard made his first appearance in the Stamford-based company since his release in April 2020 as a tribute to Bray Wyatt.
What are your thoughts on Rowan's comments about the Dark Order? Tell us in the comments section below.