"They don't want to hear reality" - Former WWE personnel points out major flaw with Tony Khan's approach failing to grow AEW's fanbase (Exclusive)
Vince Russo believes that Tony Khan won't be able to grow AEW's audience with his present approach.
All Elite Wrestling is well-known as a promotion that appeals to hardcore fans. The former WWE writer has previously slammed Tony Khan and AEW for failing to grow their fanbase.
Speaking with Dr. Chris Featherstone on the latest edition of Writing with Russo, Russo unraveled on a myriad of topics. Decoding AEW's viewership status, the industry veteran detailed his thoughts on Tony Khan's present approach of not catering to casual wrestling viewers.
Here's what Vince Russo mentioned:
"They (AEW) don't want to hear anything negative, they don't want to hear reality. When it comes to casual television viewers, that is the reality. When something is on the screen, in order for it to keep their interest and my interest, there's gotta be something that pops out at me and I ask the question 'who is this'. Otherwise I've got no interest whatsoever of investing my time unless I'm of that niche audience." (13:43 - 14:29)
The wrestling veteran has never been one to shy away from expressing his opinions. Russo summed it up very simply by saying:
"I'm just saying, guys, you're never gonna grow your audience with this presentation." (14:53 - 15:01)
Watch the latest edition of Sportskeeda Wrestling's Writing with Russo below:
Vince Russo dissected Tony Khan's approach towards the AEW product
AEW hasn't been able to cross the one million mark in total viewership in recent months. While Dynamite did register over a million viewers three times in January, it failed to carry out further propulsion.
However, Tony Khan's promotion has received a lot of attention heading into the Forbidden Door crossover pay-per-view with NJPW.
AEW X NJPW x Rihanna
All of the Lights. #ForbiddenDoor
https://t.co/V2hf9PlCsq
Discussing AEW recently on the Wrestle Buddy podcast, Russo highlighted the difference between booking a wrestling show and producing a live TV show based on wrestling:
"I said this from the beginning. There's a difference between booking a wrestling show and writing a wrestling show for TV. It's two completely different things. This guy (Tony Khan) is a booker. He books matches. The only thing that's going to draw is pure wrestling fans. He doesn't write a television show. A television show is what the masses appeal to." (Read more here)
All Elite Wrestling has been trending on social media platforms ahead of the Forbidden Door event. It will be interesting to see what impact the upcoming blockbuster pay-per-views like Blood and Guts will have on the ratings.
Please credit Sportskeeda Wrestling's Writing with Russo and give a H/T to Sportskeeda when using quotes from this article.