Bruce Prichard might not have liked top female stars exposing the wrestling business, says WWE veteran (Exclusive)
The one thing constant in professional wrestling and WWE is controversy, and Nikki Bella recently attracted attention for her comments about Total Divas.
While dissecting the story on this week's The Wrestling Outlaws, Vince Russo speculated that Bruce Prichard might have been unhappy with the Total Divas cast for exposing kayfabe all too often.
Co-produced by WWE, Total Divas was an incredibly popular reality series on E! that got canceled in 2019 following a dip in ratings.
While speaking on The Sessions with Renee Paquette, Nikki Bella claimed that Total Divas was the first thing that WWE couldn't control and accused the company of not supporting them enough despite being a mainstream success.
After reading what Nikki Bella had to say, Vince Russo came to the following conclusion:
"I'm just reading into her [Nikki Bella] words to say that you used it to turn it against us; I would guess, that the higher-ups probably did not like it and felt like they were exposing the business too much. That's what it sounds like to me." [1:22 - 1:45]
Vince Russo is familiar with most of the veterans currently working backstage in WWE, and he singled out Bruce Prichard as the man who could have played a role in Total Divas' demise.
Russo called Prichard "old school" and felt his former WWE colleague would have informed Vince McMahon about the kayfabe-breaking content on Total Divas.
Interestingly, Bruce Prichard returned to WWE in 2018, a year before E! eventually pulled the plug on the reality show. The former writer continued:
"This isn't a knock against the man. This is really just how he [Bruce Prichard] is. I know Prichard, man, I know him. He is so old school, and every time there was something like this, Vince would never in a million years watch Total Divas. But Prichard would be the guy to go and tell Vince, 'Did you know they said this? Did you know that she said that?' So when she is saying 'they worked it against us,' it sounds like that's what she is talking about." [From 01:46 to 02:2o]
Prichard currently works as the executive director of both RAW and SmackDown. He last appeared at the 2020 Money in the Bank Premium Live Event as Brother Love during the MITB ladder match.
Vince Russo says none of the WWE veterans would have liked Total Divas
It's no secret that back when Vince McMahon had all the power, he surrounded himself with people he'd known for years, and many of them still continue to work for the promotion.
Vince Russo said apart from Bruce Prichard, the likes of Michael 'P.S.' Hayes and Paul Heyman also had a similar approach towards pro wrestling, and Total Divas is something they indeed would have hated.
"They may have pulled back the curtain just a little bit too much. They don't like that. Vince [McMahon] does not like that. Prichard doesn't like that. Heyman's old school. Michael Hayes. They are still from the old school; they don't like that sh**," Russo added. [From 02:21 to 02:40]
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