Road Dogg Explains Why WWE Cancelled Talking Smack

Speaking on the "Oh... You Didn't Know" podcast, WWE Hall of Famer and Senior Vice President of Live Events "Road Dogg" Brian James revealed why the decision was made to cancel the WWE Network show "Talking Smack" in July 2017.

"Because it was simply not worth it," James said. "Logistically, it did not work. And it wasn't doing great numbers. People talk about it a lot because it was really good. ... That's what makes it now like a cult following, like 'oh my god that thing was great.' Yeah, but none of you were watching it when it was on or else it would've stayed on."

"Talking Smack" premiered in August 2016 and was a 20-minute studio talk show hosted by Renee Young and then-general manager of "Smackdown" Daniel Bryan. The show aired immediately after "Smackdown" (which was on USA Network at the time) and provided an outlet for talent to expand their programs through less-scripted material. The most famous segment involved  The Miz's promo on Bryan.

""Some of the best work I ever seen Miz and Daniel Bryan do was literally off-the-cuff, not one word rehearsed or any of that," James said. "That was all natural and what a real moment of 'what just happened there?'" 

Wanting to capitalize on the momentum of the promo, James went to Vince McMahon to suggest they do something on TV off "this thing that just happened." McMahon's response, according to James, was, "Oh, where 40,000 people watched?" As James put it, "it almost got canceled as quick as it was getting hot."

Though James acknowledges "Talking Smack" was talking to a "small, vocal portion" of the WWE audience, he wishes the show could have continued. "It felt like if they would've just held on, maybe there was a way to monetize it somehow," he said.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Oh.. You Didn't Know" podcast with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.