On the back of criticism surrounding celebrity appearances at WrestleMania 42, AEW’s Swerve Strickland has shared his opinion on the matter and when such appearances make sense.
This yr’s WrestleMania major storyline featuring Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes was overshadowed by the additions of Jelly Roll and Pat McAfee, which was not welcomed by the WWE fanbase. Strickland explained on the “REAL 92.3 LA” podcast that fan response needs to be the idea for bringing celebrities into pro wrestling.
“There is a time and a spot for it, needless to say. Once more, it at all times comes back to the connection to the fanbase. Like, how much have you ever connected with the fanbase to warrant your level of involvement in said space in wrestling,” he said. “That is all it is going to let you know. You mostly got to take heed to the fanbase. Like, they will let you know like what they’re receiving. Well, they’re like children. They cry once they don’t, you already know, getting something they don’t desire or they will cry once they want something, and you then feed it to them. They are going to be like, ‘Oh, that satisfied me.’ It’s the identical way. They are going to let you know when something’s like, they don’t love it or they are not digesting it well.”
Reports have alleged that TKO, WWE’s parent company, had a say within the storylines heading into WrestleMania 42, one in every of which was the inclusion of Pat McAfee and Jelly Roll. Reports also suggest that McAfee selected to opt out of the storyline, which was eventually set to see him team with Orton against Rhodes and Jelly Roll at Backlash.
Some in WWE have openly stated that the McAfee-Jelly Roll pairing didn’t work, with WWE commentator Corey Graves conceding that the timing of their involvement was why fans didn’t buy into it.