Vince McMahon is attempting the mother of all comebacks, and this week’s news is something those in WWE did not see coming.
McMahon retired from WWE in July 2022 following allegations of misconduct with female employees and reports of paying out millions in Non-Disclosure Agreements.
With McMahon gone, Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan have operated as co-CEOs with Stephanie serving as Chairwoman of the Board.
This week, McMahon confirmed reports of his intention to return with a statement.
Floored
WWE’s roster has been “floored” by McMahon’s plan to come back, a source told Fightful Select this week.
Nobody in any department, whether it talent, production, creative, or general staff, was given any information prior to the statement McMahon shared this week.
One Superstar told Fightful they had no inclination he’d return but “considering some people from his regime were kept this long, they must have known it would happen.”
That same source also questioned whether WWE will host a talk with the roster at tonight’s taping of WWE SmackDown on FOX.
A different talent said, “Finding out online is scary, and it’s Vince, so I don’t believe a word he says.”
One concerned higher-up added that former talent who believe Vince liked them are kidding themselves.
“He didn’t like you, he didn’t like any of them. He fired or they wouldn’t have been fired during a pandemic.”
Creative
Prior to his retirement, McMahon served as WWE’s Head of Creative, a role now occupied by Triple H.
One anonymous Superstar, described as a “top WWE talent” questioned whether McMahon could return to creative if his plan is a success.
The idea that McMahon could return to creative has been a common concern among talent.
The two sources within the creative department who spoke to Fightful said they had not learned of any adjustments to their duties.
“I would be blown away if he returned to creative,” a recently signed talent said.
Production
Like the roster and those at creative, the production team had no heads-up about McMahon’s statement prior to its publication.
The “unanimous decision” among those in production who spoke to Fightful said that this is bad news, or news about their pay grade.
One source did acknowledge WWE’s stock price seeing a dramatic increase following McMahon’s stated intention to return.
