AEW owner Tony Khan addressed a wide range of topics during the Dynasty post-show press conference.
He was asked about the decision to air footage of the backstage altercation between CM Punk and Jack Perry at All In 2024.
Khan said:
I do think we made a bold call in the run-up to this match, and really, it heightened the circumstances, and I do think it added to the presentation of the moment of Jack Perry’s return tonight at AEW Dynasty, and the pay-per-view was a home run, and I think a lot of people felt like it was a great return.
Also, I felt like it was important to explain partially where Jack’s been, because the last time we saw him on AEW television was at Wembley Stadium.
Asked whether Mercedes Moné was currently cleared to wrestle, Khan replied:
She’ll be cleared at Double or Nothing for the singles match, and that was a big part of this, knowing that it’s been a major road for her to return from the injury. When she wrestles at Double or Nothing, it will be a full year since she last wrestled.
On the subject of AEW media rights, Khan was asked if there was a possibility that he would take all three main shows to a streaming platform.
Well, it’s a great question. I think it’s something to consider.
There are sports that have done that, and when you look at different media rights, some people have split among a platform of streaming and linear TV, cable TV.
We’re gonna have a lot of great options. Right now, I think we’re in an exclusive negotiating window with Warner Bros Discovery, which is amazing.
We have really an amazing relationship, and I think it’s a really great thing to have wrestling on TBS and TNT for the fans every week.
It’s a great tradition. It’s a great American tradition.
And I really, really love it, and all things, you know, to me, I love being here, and I can’t wait to keep talking, keep figuring it out, but I definitely think you can count on 2025, at a minimum, the opportunity to stream the amazing library that we’ve built.
On whether future pay-per-views would be available in the US on multiple streaming platforms, Khan said:
Right now, I think that deal is set for at least two more pay-per-views, that it’s gonna be distributed across multiple platforms, so definitely for Double or Nothing in May, and then in June, Forbidden Door, those will be streamed across, I think, all these platforms.
I believe pretty much all of them we saw tonight, Triller, YouTube, obviously Bleacher Report, our home since the beginning, and ppv.com — a number of streaming platforms in addition to cable.
I believe we know for at least the next two pay-per-views, the multiple platform approach is gonna be there, and then we’re planning for the future.
Khan was then asked about whether Warner Bros Discovery was happy with the current AEW product.
Very happy, I heard from them, “Great show tonight”, and I’ve been hearing really great things.
The past few weeks, the Dynamite numbers were significantly up from where they were the last couple weeks, and the pay-per-view tonight, tremendous.
They were thrilled with it, so I’ve already got the text right before I walked in here about what a great event it was, how happy they are with it, and really, really good feedback on Dynamite and also Collision last night.
On how Sunday’s pay-per-view performed financially, Khan said:
I think it’s looking really positive. Multiple streaming platforms hopefully will work for us. We’ve had a really good response across these new platforms.
So data’s still coming in, and we’ve got it coming in from a lot more sources. So it’s still adding up, but it was a really, really great show and looking very positive, especially for an inaugural pay-per-view. It could be one of our best franchise launches.
Finally, Khan was asked about high-profile talents that are currently out of the picture, namely MJF, Kenny Omega and Britt Baker. He said:
I would love to get MJF back here soon, sooner than later, like really soon. We’ve got so many great things happening, and I think that would be really additive.
On Omega and Baker, he added:
I would look forward to seeing both of them as soon as we possibly can. I think both of them have been recuperating from totally different things. Both great former world champions for AEW, and hopefully we can see them both soon.
Going to Winnipeg, it would be great, even if you can’t return, to see Kenny Omega, I think that would be pretty awesome for the fans up there. So that’s still something I’m optimistic hopefully we could do.
But also, for Dr. Britt Baker, the sooner she’s back the better. She was a great World Champion for us and a great representative of AEW. We’ve missed her and that would be tremendous.
And we’ve missed Kenny Omega. I’ve talked to him a few times this week. He’s one of our greatest champions, one of our greatest stars ever, and he’s been here from the beginning, so we definitely miss him.
