What WWE And Other Promotions Expect Of Talent On OnlyFans And Similar Sites - Exclusive
One of the biggest stories in a very busy week for pro wrestling news has been WWE's firing of Mandy Rose on Wednesday morning. Reportedly, in light of the explicitness of the content on her FanTime subscription page increasing as of late, and some of those pictures and videos leaking over the weekend on social media, "NXT" head coach Matt Bloom held a meeting with Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative Shawn Michaels. There, Bloom briefed Michaels on the nature of the content, which included Rose and her fiance, former WWE wrestler Tino Sabbatelli (Sabatino Piscitelli), naked together in a shower and at least simulating sex. It was at that point that the decision was made to have her drop the "NXT" Women's Championship that night to Roxanne Perez en route to firing her.
All of that said, a common topic of discussion online has been what, exactly, was the last straw for WWE and if any formal guidelines had been laid down for talent with pages on similar subscription services. After all, it had been public knowledge for over a month that the "secret menu" for extra perks available to Rose's subscribers included having fans pay her to rate videos of their genitalia. With that in mind, Wrestling Inc. reached out to sources in WWE to try to understand if there is a formal or even informal policy on what was allowed or if it was an issue taken up on a case-by-case basis.
Sources: It comes down to common sense
According to two different sources in WWE with knowledge of how the company has been handling the issue of talent using third-party content monetization sites, there are no set rules as to what is allowed, though it seems WWE frowns on OnlyFans in particular. (As of this writing, WWE spokespeople have not responded to an email asking if there is a formal policy or not.)
Basically, it's viewed more as a matter of common sense. One of the sources explained that though there's a major temptation to post more risque content after seeing how much money something like bikini photo sets brings in, the flip side is also apparent in a WWE context. There's a recognition that more explicit content could cause issues with sponsors, licensees (particularly toy companies like Mattel), and charity partners, which keeps the escalation from being worth the trouble if you want to stay in WWE. As the other source put it, "She represents a brand."
It's worth noting, though, that Rose apparently had a unique arrangement that had her differently situated from other talents in terms of the cost-benefit analysis of the FanTime page versus her WWE pay. Reportedly, by virtue of being in "NXT," she was subject to looser restrictions on what content creation she could do on her own, but she was still being paid on the main roster contract she signed in 2019 when WWE was offering big guarantees with AEW on the horizon.
It's not that different outside of WWE
Elsewhere, the situation is similar. In Impact Wrestling, multiple current and former roster members currently have or have had OnlyFans pages. They include Jordynne Grace, Chelsea Green, Taya Valkyrie, and Lady Frost, with none of them known to be particularly racy. An Impact source with knowledge of their policies said that the nature of the content is considered a common sense issue there, as well. That source noted that while Impact is more flexible than WWE on such matters, particularly with so much of the talent not being paid full-time, nudity would likely be a red line.
AEW's Toni Storm has an OnlyFans page, but it's another one that is not known to be explicit. Mixed martial artist and bare-knuckle boxing crossover Paige VanZant, though, does have an OnlyFans page that features nudity. She is currently listed on the AEW roster page but has not been seen on AEW programming in several months, and not at all since moving her subscription site from FanTime in September. AEW sources who would have knowledge of what the company's boundaries are with regard to such content have not responded as of this writing.