Original AEW Production VP Reportedly Fired By Former WWE Executive Mike Mansury

There have reportedly been some personnel changes in AEW's front office. According to Dave Meltzer of "Wrestling Observer," former VP of Post Production Kevin Sullivan was let go by AEW on Monday, with Senior VP and Co-Executive Producer Mike Mansury making the call to fire him. 

The report added that Sullivan, not to be confused with wrestling legend Kevin Sullivan, was "very highly thought of" by people within AEW from the earliest days of Tony Khan's promotion when he came over from Impact Wrestling. In fact, Sullivan was said to have "built the entire AEW post production team" based in Nashville and was instrumental in putting together video packages, vignettes, and non-televised programming for YouTube. Meltzer's report added that there are "a lot of questions going around" regarding the exact reason for Sullivan's dismissal, and whether the decision was just a reflection of the changes AEW has been undergoing. 

It now remains to be seen if Sullivan's firing is part of wider changes being implemented by Mansury, WWE's former VP of Global Television Production, who joined AEW last December. Upon joining AEW, Mansury revealed he was devoid of fresh challenges in WWE and wanted to be part of the upstart AEW with hopes of competing with the sports entertainment juggernaut. In an interview with Renee Paquette, Mansury noted that he grew up watching the Monday Night Wars and wanted to be part of a similar situation with AEW possibly challenging the supremacy of WWE.

In recent months, fans and wrestling analysts alike have noticed subtle changes to AEW programming, specifically the production/pacing of matches, wider stages, and theatrical backstage segments. It's believed Mansury has been instrumental in implementing those changes. Before joining AEW, Mansury briefly worked on "The Pat McAfee Show" and also spent a year with Singapore-based MMA promotion ONE Championship.