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Source: Netflix / Netflix
After almost two decades of being a programming stable on the USA Network, WWE Monday Night Raw will be making their much publicized move to Netflix in January 2025 and while fans don’t know exactly what that may mean for the show, it seems like not many changes will be made.
According to Deadline, WWE and Netflix executives spoke to the media Tuesday (Dec. 3), and revealed what we can expect from Monday Night Raw when it streams on Netflix Jan. 6 (hopefully it won’t involve an insurrection) and where they hope it goes going forward. With WWE overlord Vince McMahon no longer involved in the company due to some scandalous accusations, his son-in-law, Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque, and WWE President Nick Khan will steer the franchise going forward. With a 10-year deal worth an impressive $5 billion dollars, best believe they’ll do what they can to keep the show fresh, relevant and utterly entertaining.
With that being said, do not expect the move to Netflix to automatically set the rating from PG-13 to a hard-rated R as Nick Khan promises the wrestling soap opera will continue to be a family affair that people of all ages can enjoy.
Per Deadline:
“We’re not changing the rating of our programming. So there’s some online chatter about, ‘oh, it’s going to be R-rated, or for us old folks, X-rated.’ That’s definitely not happening,” he said. “It’s family-friendly, multi-generational, advertiser-friendly programming. It’s going to stay that way. I would look for more global flair, especially as the relationship continues to develop. Countries outside of the United States are as important to us as the United States is. So we have certain targeted countries that are priorities for Netflix. They’re priorities for us. You’re going to see more of that. I think that’s the way you’ll see a bit of a difference.”
That’s all good and dandy, but we wouldn’t be opposed to seeing Monday Night Raw return to the golden “Attitude Era,” which bore many classic moments and matches that blurred the line between PG-13 and NC-17. Just sayin’.
While fans are worried that the move may lead to streaming problems as we witnessed during the fiasco that was the Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul fight, it seems like that’s a risk that Netflix’s Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria and company are willing to take.
“We expected a big number, for sure. It was a big number. But again, you don’t know, and you can’t learn these things until you do them so you take a big swing. Our teams and our engineers are amazing, moved super quickly, and stabilized it, and many of the members had it back up and running pretty quickly. But we learn from those things. And we’ve all obviously done a lot of stuff to learn and get ready for the NFL and Beyonce at halftime and so we’re totally ready and excited for WWE.”
Added Levesque jokingly, “I’ll just say, if it blinks a couple of times and we do 60 million, I’m good with that.”
Heck, for $5 billion we’d be good with a few blinks too.
Aside from remaining true to their platform, WWE does expect more celebrity involvement in future matches (Bad Bunny actually held his own during his WWE run) and possibly taking their SmackDown and NXT shows along with them to the streaming platform when those contracts are up.
What do y’all expect from WWE Monday Night Raw when it moves to Netflix? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Monday Night Raw, the long-running live WWE wrestling program featuring some of the promotion’s biggest names, will soon get the Netflix treatment in a live airing happening at the top of next year. During the broadcast, Travis Scott will be on hand to deliver a new theme song at the Intuit Dome for Monday Night Raw according to WWE Chief Content Officer, Triple H.
The news was announced on the second night of ComplexCon during Travis Scott’s closing set, held on the main stage at the Los Angeles Convention Center. As seen on video, Triple H, real name Paul Levesque, came out on stage with a WWE belt in hand and shared that Scott will be bringing the rage with the new Monday Night Raw theme song in the promotion’s first live show via Netflix, which is jumping into the live sports arena with two feet.
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The announcement was made by WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque and Travis Scott on stage from his sold-out concert at ComplexCon in Las Vegas. Scott, who will be at the January 6 Netflix debut, also revealed his new music will serve as the theme song for RAW.
The premiere episode of Monday Night RAW on Netflix will feature some of the biggest names in WWE such as John Cena, Undisputed WWE Champion “The American Nightmare” Cody Rhodes, Roman Reigns, CM Punk, Bianca Belair, in addition to many other Superstars and surprise guests.
This partnership marks a new era for WWE fans, with the much-anticipated debut of live weekly programming with can’t-miss action unfolding 52-weeks a year on Netflix.
Tickets for the Netflix debut of WWE’s Monday Night Raw will go on sale this coming Friday (November 22) at 10 am PT/1 pm ET by way of Ticketmaster.
A presale event launches on Wednesday (November 2) at 10 am PT/1 pm ET. To sign up for an exclusive presale offer, click here. Raw priority passes are also available from the On Location platform, offering exclusive promotions for the biggest fans. Learn more here.
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WWE takes the show to The Big Peach with Bad Blood this Saturday, (Oct. 5). The premium live event takes place at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, with a start time of 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.
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Want to watch WWE Bad Blood 2024 online? This PLE event is available to stream on the WWE Network on Peacock for Premium or Premium Plus subscribers only.
If you don’t subscribe to the streaming service, you can get access with a Peacock monthly subscription, which starts at $7.99 per month for the ad-supported plan, or $13.99 for the ad-free plan.
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Along with Bad Blood and the WWE Network, you can also watch original programming, such as Love Island USA, Bel-Air, The Traitors and others; hit movies, including Monkey Man, Abigail, The Holdovers, Oppenheimer and others; live sports from NBC Sports; live news from NBC News; and more than 50 streaming channels.
Check out the WWE Bad Blood 2024 match card below, and livestream the event here.
Match Card, 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT
CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre (Hell in a Cell) — Main Event
Liv Morgan (champion) vs. Rhea Ripley (Women’s World Championship) — Title Match
Damian Priest vs. Finn Bálor
Nia Jax (champion) vs. Bayley (WWE Women’s Championship) — Title Match
Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns vs. The Bloodline
WWE Bad Blood 2024 is available to stream on Peacock on Saturday, Oct. 5, starting at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.
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Source: Netflix / Netflix
Netflix has released the trailer for the documentary series on the controversial WWE chairman Vince McMahon.
The trailer for the Netflix documentary series Mr. McMahon made its debut, showing the rise and tumultuous fall of World Wrestling Entertainment chairman and co-founder Vince McMahon. The trailer is loaded with snippets from interviews with a few of the wrestling federation’s legends including Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold Steve Austin, John Cena, and Paul “Triple H” Levesque. McMahon himself is extensively featured, having sat down for multiple interviews concerning his career during the filming of the series. Mr. McMahon will debut on the platform on September 25.
Mr. McMahon covers the life and career of Vince McMahon from his beginnings as a businessman who helped found the WWE (formerly the World Wrestling Federation), overseeing its rise from a regional force to a dominant global entertainment company to the shocking sexual abuse allegations that forced him to step down. The six-part series, according to the press release, aims to “present an unflinching, no-holds-barred look at one of the most enigmatic figures in sports entertainment.” It was originally announced in October 2020. McMahon would announce his retirement from the WWE as its board of directors was investigating allegations of misconduct. He’d return to oversee the sale of the WWE to Endeavor, who merged it with the UFC under the TKO umbrella in 2023. McMahon would then step down again due to another sexual assault allegation.
Tiger King filmmaker Chris Smith is the director of the series and is an executive producer along with the noted sports journalist Bill Simmons and Zara Duffy. There was speculation that the series wouldn’t go forward after Netflix’s 10-year, $5 billion deal to be the home of WWE’s Monday Night Raw beginning next January. “The goal behind Mr. McMahon was to pull back the curtain and reveal the true Vince McMahon, obscured beneath the persona he presented to the world,” Smith said in an interview with Deadline. “Over the four years of production, the story evolved in truly shocking ways, culminating in some extremely harrowing allegations. The final product is a revealing documentary that we believe offers a rich and nuanced portrait of the man and the complex legacy he left behind.”
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WWE takes the show to Deutschland with the Bash in Berlin this Saturday, (Aug. 31). The pay-per-view live event takes place at Uber Arena in Berlin, Germany, with a start time of 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.
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Want to watch WWE Bash In Berlin 2024 online? This PPV event is available to stream on the WWE Network on Peacock for Premium or Premium Plus subscribers only.
If you don’t subscribe to the streaming service, you can get access with a Peacock monthly subscription, which starts at $7.99 per month for the ad-supported plan, or $13.99 for the ad-free plan.
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Along with Bash In Berlin and the WWE Network, you can also watch original programming, such as Love Island USA, Bel-Air, The Traitors and others; hit movies, including Monkey Man, Abigail, The Holdovers, Oppenheimer and others; live sports from NBC Sports; live news from NBC News; and more than 50 streaming channels.
Check out the WWE Bash In Berlin 2024 match card below, and livestream the event here.
Match Card, 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT
Gunther (champion) vs. Randy Orton (World Heavyweight Championship) — Main Event
Cody Rhodes (champion) vs. Kevin Owens (Undisputed WWE Championship)
The Judgment Day vs. The Terror Twins (Mixed tag team match)
CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre (Strap Match)
The Unholy Union (champion) vs. Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill (WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship Match)
WWE Bash In Berlin 2024 is available to stream on Peacock on Saturday, Aug. 31, starting at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.
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Jelly Roll checked off an item on his bucket list after participating in this year’s WWE SummerSlam.
On Saturday (Aug. 3), the 39-year-old country star stepped into the wrestling ring at Cleveland Browns Stadium to deliver some major punishment during a heated match that found Miz and R-Truth battling Austin Theory and Grayson Waller.
Dressed in all black, Jelly teamed up with Miz and R-Truth and came armed with a folding chair that he furiously slammed onto his foes. The “Need a Favor” singer-rapper capped off the appearance by chokeslamming Theory, sending the stadium crowd into thunderous applause.
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“Crazy- I lived a child hood dream tonight in the craziest way I’ve ever lived it. Wow. Man thank you @WWE for everything . What a night,” Jelly Roll wrote on X (formerly Twitter) after the event.
“Absolute madness- unreal – butter biscuit bombs baby,” he wrote in another post with footage of his ferocious moves.
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Elsewhere during SummerSlam, Jelly Roll stepped into the ring with his band to perform the song “Liar,” which served as the official theme of the event.
WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque teased in mid-July that Jelly might perform at the prestigious annual wrestling spectacle.
“Excited to have my friend Jelly Roll back with two official #SummerSlam theme songs: ‘Dead End Road’ off Twisters: The Album, and ‘Liar’ off his album coming this fall,” Levesque wrote on social media.
This isn’t the chart-topping country musician’s first interaction with WWE. The Nashville native has made several surprise appearances at WWE events in his hometown, most memorably in November 2023, during which he got involved in a match between wrestlers Randy Orton and Dominik Mysterio by pushing Mysterio and JD McDonagh after they confronted him outside the ring.
“I just felt like I was backing my boy,” Jelly said at the time.
It’s the latest addition to Jelly Roll’s ever-growing list of achievements, with the country superstar recently collaborating with Eminem on “Somebody Save Me,” which served as the closer on the rapper’s latest album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce).
See Jelly Roll’s SummerSlam posts on X and watch his “Liar” performance at the event on YouTube below.
Crazy- I lived a child hood dream tonight in the craziest way I’ve ever lived it Wow Man thank you @WWE for everything . What a night— Jelly Roll (@JellyRoll615) August 4, 2024
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WWE takes the show to “The Land” with the 37th annual SummerSlam this Saturday, Aug. 3.
The pay-per-view live event takes place at Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio, with a start time of 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. Want to watch WWE SummerSlam 2024 online? This premium live event is available to stream on the WWE Network on Peacock for Premium or Premium Plus subscribers only.
If you don’t subscribe to the streaming service, you can get access with a Peacock monthly subscription, which starts at $7.99 per month for the ad-supported plan, or $13.99 for the ad-free plan.
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Check out the WWE SummerSlam 2024 match card below, and livestream the event here.
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Match Card, 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT
Cody Rhodes (champion) vs. Solo Sikoa (Undisputed WWE Championship Match) — Main Event
Damian Priest (champion) vs. Gunther (World Heavyweight Championship Match)
Liv Morgan (champion) vs. Rhea Ripley (Women’s World Championship Match)
Sami Zayn (champion) vs. Bron Breakker (Intercontinental Championship Match)
Logan Paul (champion) vs. LA Knight — (United States Championship Match)
Bayley (champion) vs. Nia Jax (WWE Women’s Championship Match)
CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre (with Seth “Freakin” Rollins as special guest referee)
Want to attend WWE SummerSlam in person? There are last-minute tickets available with Ticket Network, Vivid Seats, SeatGeek and StubHub. Prices vary depending on seats available at Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio.
In fact, you can save $150 off tickets over $500 with promo code BILLBOARD150, or get $300 off ticket purchases of more than $1,000 with promo code BILLBOARD300 at TicketNetwork.com.
WWE SummerSlam 2024 is available to stream on Peacock on Saturday, Aug. 3, starting at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
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WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque announced on July 16 that chart-topping country artist Jelly Roll will provide the official theme songs for this year’s SummerSlam event.
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The prestigious annual wrestling spectacle, scheduled for Aug. 3 in Cleveland, will showcase two of Jelly Roll’s tracks: “Dead End Road” from his album Twisters and his recent hit “Liar.”
Levesque’s social media announcement included a telling hint at a possible live performance. “Excited to have my friend Jelly Roll back with two official #SummerSlam theme songs: ‘Dead End Road’ off Twisters: The Album, and ‘Liar’ off his album coming this fall.”
He added, “btw, @JellyRoll615 – let me know if you’re free on Aug. 3 to play a few songs for the @WWEUniverse,” he tweeted, leaving fans speculating about an in-person appearance by the musician.
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This isn’t Jelly Roll’s first interaction with WWE.
The Nashville native has made several surprise appearances at WWE events in his hometown, most memorably in November 2023, during which he got involved in a match between wrestlers Randy Orton and Dominik Mysterio by pushing Mysterio and JD McDonagh after they confronted him outside the ring.
“I just felt like I was backing my boy,” Jelly Roll said at the time.
It’s the latest addition to Jelly Roll’s ever-growing list of achievements, with the country superstar recently collaborating with Eminem on “Somebody Save Me,” which served as the closer on the rapper’s latest album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce).
Reflecting on working with the Rap God, Jelly Roll shared, “I always say my childhood heroes lived somewhere between Willie Nelson and Eminem.”
“As a teenager (and still today) I could recite every song on the Slim Shady album, the Marshall Mathers album and The Eminem Show. When I bonded out of jail at 17 years old and was sneaking into cyphers and battles in Nashville they would also play the ‘Lose Yourself’ beat when I came out on stage at the freestyle battles.”
“I related to every word Eminem wrote. I understand him and felt like he understood me, which was rare cause I spent most of my life feeling misunderstood.”
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Source: WWE / Getty
After professionally wrestling for almost a quarter of a century, WWE superstar John Cena is calling it a career.
According to Deadline, the iconic wrestling superstar plans on hanging it up after 23 years of putting on amazing shows in the squared ring exclusively for the WWE. One of the very few wrestlers to have never left the company he started for, John Cena has spent the last two decades and change giving people reasons to both cheer him and jeer him while never once turning heel after becoming the face of the company. At one point, people began to boo him just because he was such a good guy that he became corny to them. It was hilarious.
Now, it seems like the 13-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion is prepared to move on to bigger and better things (Hollywood) as over the weekend, during a surprise appearance at WWE’s Money in the Bank event in Toronto, Canada, Cena shocked everyone when he announced that after next year’s WrestleMania you won’t see him wrestling in the ring ever again.
Per Deadline:
“Why am I here? Tonight, I officially announce my retirement from the WWE,” he said to shocked gasps from the audience.
Later in his speech, Cena revealed he plans to stay on to take part in Monday Night Raw as it makes the unprecedented move to Netflix in January 2025.
“This farewell, it does not end tonight,” he said. “It is filled with opportunity. Everybody, Raw makes history next year when it moves to Netflix. I’ve never been a part of Raw on Netflix, that is history. That is a first, and I will be there.
“And along with that history making first, we are going to build so many unforgettable lasts. The 2025 Royal Rumble will be my last. The 2025 Elimination Chamber will be my last. And I’m here tonight to announce that in Las Vegas, WrestleMania 2025 will be the last WrestleMania I compete in,” added Cena.
With John Cena at least outlining what his last year of wrestling will entail, we have to wonder what kind of storyline will lead to his exit. Who will be his last antagonist? Roman Reigns? Solo Sikoa? CM Punk? It’s anyone’s guess at this point, but we just hope he puts on a helluva last run as he’s earned it over the decades.
“Thank you so much for letting me play in the house that you built for so many years,” said Cena. “Thank you so much always for your voice, because it’s really loud, and your honesty, because it’s beautifully brutal. And most of all, thank you so much for allowing me to be with you here tonight to let the whole world know that we are planning something unforgettable, which also involves me returning to Toronto to kick some ass!”
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. WWE takes the show up north with the 15th edition of their Money in the Bank fight this Saturday, June 6. […]