"They were super, super angry" - Chris Jericho reveals how Warner execs threatened to "pull" AEW Dynamite because of a segment on the show
In a recent interview with Stephanie Chase, Chris Jericho revealed that a segment on Dynamite in 2019, ahead of AEW Full Gear, infuriated WarnerMedia executives. Jericho briefly smoked a cigar during the segment.
As disclosed in the interview, Jericho later heard that WarneMedia higher-ups also threatened to "pull the show" if there was any such incidents in the future:
"AEW is as successful as we are because we’re not afraid to take a few chances and we’re not worried about taking some chances and not worried about getting slapped on the wrist if we do something that we shouldn’t do. We just don’t do it again but there hasn’t been that many times. Like I said, for me, there’s two times that I can recall that they said, ‘Don’t ever do that again’ and I was like, ‘Okay. I had no idea.’ One of ‘em actually was when we beat up Dustin Rhodes when I was feuding with Cody [Rhodes] way back at the beginning and we beat him up in the parking lot and then as we left, I lit up a cigar and they did not like that. ‘No smoking allowed on the show.’ They were super, super angry about it. ‘No smoking allowed’ and I was like, ‘Really? Out of all the things, that’s what they’re mad at?’ But they were very adamant that they did not want any smoking on the show and if you do this again — I don’t know if this was actually ever used but the way it was told to me was like, ‘We’ll pull the show if you guys do this again’ so it’s like all right, I don’t need to be smoking," Jericho said. (h/t - POST Wrestling)
What went down in the AEW Dynamite segment that enraged WarnerMedia higher-ups?
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Ahead of their match at Full Gear 2019, Cody and Chris Jericho had a contract signing segment on AEW Dynamite. After both men signed the contract, Sammy Guevara appeared on the screen. He and Jake Hager were in the parking lot with Cody's brother Dustin Rhodes.
.@realjakehager attacking @dustinrhodes here in Charleston, WV - Fear the Inner Circle! Watch #AEWDynamite LIVE on @TNTDrama 8e/7c https://t.co/0rmtnwvnjT
Hager assaulted Dustin Rhodes, slamming him into a limo before hitting him with a low blow. As Rhodes tried to recover, Hager slammed the limo door against his arm.
To end the segment, Jericho and the Inner Circle members left in a van as Cody checked on his brother. It was at this point that we briefly saw Jericho smoking a cigar.