WWE Hall Of Famer Arn Anderson Discusses Importance Of Collaboration In Locker Room

Arn Anderson is a legendary competitor in professional wrestling, but he's also had a tremendous second life as a coach and creative, helping sculpt many of WWE's main event matches for much of the 21st century. 

On a recent "Busted Open Radio," Anderson said a key part of putting together a good match and a good event is collaboration behind the scenes.

"I used to walk around and I would look at the scheduled matches and I knew what guys did ... you need to know whatever everybody else does well and does sh***y, so you can avoid that," Anderson explained, noting that a producer needs to be able to turn down a suggestion from a talent. "I'm gonna protect you from yourself."

Anderson also said it's important to ask fellow talent and producers about the finishes and big moments they were writing into their matches so that nothing ends up feeling redundant in front of the live crowd.

"If you're the third person to do a superkick and just stand a guy up instead of knocking 'em on their ass ... chances are they're pretty desensitized to it, so you just wasted that move," Anderson explained. He stressed the importance of keeping matches distinct and says it's even a matter of respect to make sure the wrestlers aren't stepping on each other's proverbial toes.

"Building a show is like building a match," Anderson said, noting the event needs the highs and lows, and most importantly, the lack of repetition of a wrestling match. Anderson took his talents to AEW when the company launched in 2019, but has since left the company, saying he wanted to focus on nurturing his son Brock's career.