Tony Khan Questions Vince McMahon's Habit Of Ripping Up WWE Scripts
AEW President Tony Khan recently spoke with Forbes about Vince McMahon's habit of ripping up WWE RAW scripts on the day of the show. It has been reported many times over the years that the script for the red brand has been changed just hours before showtime.
"To be honest, when I hear about somebody going in, and they have a TV show on Monday that they rip up. My first thought is, 'what were you doing all weekend?' Because I work my ass off on the weekends," he claimed. "I have to come in with a plan for Wednesday, and Friday night, I want to make sure Dynamite's great, and Rampage.
"So, I don't do everything myself, but I do make the final decision on everything. I put the format together, I put an outline of what the show is going to be for Dynamite and Rampage, I write it by hand. I don't understand why you're going to come in and rip up a show that you have a pretty good idea of what it is. And you should have approved it, where Monday, we know what we're doing."
While Tony Khan likes things to be done ahead of the show, he did admit that changes do still happen. The AEW President confessed that certain aspects can be tweaked on the day, but for the most part he likes to know what is happening for the next few weeks.
"Things change on the day of the show, not that I never change my mind on the day of, I do," he said. "Not where I am going to change everything, I might change one or two things around on instinct or because something happened. But, for the most part, I like to have a good idea of what is going to be on the show next week, and the week after. I really believe that the fans like that we try our best not to insult their intelligence."
Tony Khan then discussed the way he runs episodes of AEW television. For him, he doesn't want to tell everyone what to say, instead, he likes the talent to tell the stories in their own way. This is why he believes they have excellent interviews and promos on the whole.
"I do try to make the shows compelling, and also logical," he said. "I think that's also one of the challenges, because a lot of times people come to you with ideas, and it's hard because everyone has got their own approaches and their own philosophies. But, there's a tone to the show. So, I really just want people to go out and make the points, and keep the stories going. I'm not so autocratic that I want to control every word somebody says on television. I think that's also why some of our interviews, our storytelling in promos are really strong, I believe."
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Forbes with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.