Tony Khan, Brodie Lee, Stu Grayson and Evil Uno discuss The Dark Order in AEW
The Dark Order have certainly had their ups and downs in AEW so far. Perhaps the lowest point of the faction's history came during the final episode of AEW Dynamite in 2019.
The final segment of Dynamite saw The Dark Order and their minions attack all members of The Elite as the show went off the air. However, the segment was widely panned as one of the minions threw visibly fake punches to Dustin Rhodes, a clip which then went viral on social media.
This resulted in a backlash from professional wrestling fans criticizing The Dark Order and AEW's promotion of the faction. During a recent interview with ESPN, AEW President Tony Khan and The Dark Order's Stu Grayson, Evil Uno and Brodie Lee discussed the group's run in AEW so far.
Stu Grayson admitted that he had major concerns after the group's disastrous angle with The Elite on the episode of Dynamite:
"We figured we were either screwed, or we're going to have to find something to bring us back from the dead,"
AEW President Tony Khan quickly defended both Stu Grayson and Evil Uno, suggesting that there were several issues with the presentation of The Dark Order at the time in AEW:
"It wasn't necessarily those guys' fault, but I felt like we had to do a lot of things to add to the presentation. And that was a lot of brainstorming towards the end of the year and the beginning of this year."
'The Exalted One' Brodie Lee saves The Dark Order in AEW?
Many believe that the resurrection of The Dark Oder in AEW came with the reveal that former WWE Superstar Brodie Lee was The Exalted One of The Dark Order in March. Brodie Lee was immediately placed as the leader of the faction, adding instant credibility to the group.
Stu Grayson recalled discovering that Brodie Lee would be the leader of the group and his excitement of working with him:
"We wanted to have someone we know we could work with, someone we could actually fit as the head of a cult, someone who could talk, someone who could wrestle, so when we had confirmation that Brodie Lee was coming in, we were pretty happy, because we thought of all the people we could have had, we were going to have one of our best friends. He can work, he looks great, he talks."
AEW President Tony Khan would also comment on Brodie Lee's promo ability. Brodie Lee previously didn't get the opportunity to cut promos as Luke Harper in WWE. However, Tony Khan praised The Exalted One's ability on the mic:
"He's got the great physical size. He didn't do so many promos in WWE, but he actually does great promos. And so he was from the beginning someone that we figured to be a top person in AEW as soon as he signed with us."
Brodie Lee was scheduled to make his debut in front of his hometown crowd in Rochester, New York. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Brodie Lee would make his AEW debut with no fans in attendance at Daily's Place in March.
In addition, immediate comparisons were made between Brodie Lee's character in AEW and Lee's former employer Vince McMahon. Brodie Lee spoke about the therapeutic experience of discovering his instincts once again in AEW:
"I had to understand that my instincts were correct again, I was almost seeking out so many opinions because that's where I came from, that's what it was. It was lots of people putting pieces in, instead of just letting myself be who I am. That confidence has only come in the last couple of months, and the last three or four weeks that I've talked, everything I've said has been 100% true, has been 100% from my heart, and to be able to talk about that is cathartic and almost therapeutic, so you guys are seeing that come out on screen. That anxiety, that confidence, and all of that coming out together, I hope you guys are enjoying it."
Brodie Lee is the current AEW TNT Champion after destroying Cody to capture the title on the recent Saturday, August 22 edition of AEW Dynamite.
Tonight at AEW All Out, The Dark Order will face off against Matt Cardona, Scorpio Sky and The Natural Nightmares in an 8-man Tag Team match.