Tony Khan Shares Surprising Length Mariah May-Toni Storm AEW Feud Has Been In Works

For almost a year, the Mariah May/Toni Storm friendship had become one of the most popular long-running stories AEW had produced, until last week, when May shockingly betrayed Storm after winning the Owen Hart Foundation tournament, somehow giving the story even more steam. With May and Storm now scheduled to face off at All In next month, AEW owner Tony Khan has decided its time to give a behind-the-scenes look at the storyline, revealing that it was in the works long before May debuted in AEW in October.

Speaking with Sports Illustrated, Khan disclosed that the genesis for the May/Storm story began during a conversation with a top AEW star in May 2023.

"Bryan Danielson and I were flying home from Double or Nothing, and we were talking about wrestling and what stuck out to us," Khan said. "And Bryan asked 'Have you seen Mariah?' I said I had, and that I was amazed at how, very quickly, she'd become one of the top stars in Stardom. We both agreed she was very polished and charismatic. That's when I asked Bryan if he'd seen 'All About Eve' and 'Sunset Boulevard.'"

Shortly after that, Khan spoke with May about his idea, who expressed interest, and then took the idea to Storm, then AEW Women's World Champion and a member of The Outcasts stable with Saraya and Ruby Soho.

"I went to Toni Storm and suggested these movies...because she had that larger-than-life persona like Gloria Swanson in 'Sunset Boulevard' and Bette Davis in 'All About Eve,'" Khan said. "That is 'Timeless' Toni Storm. She's that starlet, with that presence...backstage, in the ring, out of the ring...of one of those rare old Hollywood stars. This is the role Toni was born to play, and she is absolutely incredible at it."

After getting everything in order, Khan went back and rewatched "Sunset Boulevard" for more inspiration, leading to him casting Luther in the role of Storm's butler. He also consulted with AEW personality, and film buff, RJ City, who Khan credits for being instrumental in the story's success.

"My right hand in all of this is RJ," Khan said. "He was the only person in the office who'd seen 'All About Eve' and 'Sunset Boulevard,' and he understood old Hollywood and the old movies. He's been so valuable and tremendous throughout this process. He has a great aptitude for wrestling, and he was also able to use these movies for inspiration."

While Khan is thrilled that the whole thing has turned out so well, he's especially happy with how well May has done in her role, reminding everyone that May had only recently broken out in STARDOM prior to joining AEW. He also hyped up May's appearance on tonight's episode of "Dynamite," where she will address why she betrayed her mentor for the first time.

"I saw something in her, and I asked her to do something very different when she came to AEW," Khan said. "There was even some backlash at the beginning when people were pushing back that she came into AEW as this big fan of Toni Storm, which was very different from what she was doing in Stardom. 

"Now we're going to learn how and why she did all this, and how she became one of the biggest stars in wrestling in less than a year in AEW. Tonight, she'll speak for the first time since this betrayal. We'll hear what's in Mariah's heart, and I think people are going to be amazed at what they learn."