Will Ospreay will battle Alex Zayne at Night 2 of NJPW’s New Japan Showdown event, which takes place Sunday night from Philadelphia, PA.
SEScoops correspondent Samira spoke with Ospreay earlier this month about what this match means to him and how he’s been preparing for their showdown.
“Big Match Billy” says that he’s been watching the man formerly known as Ari Sterling for a long time. “I used to watch Alex Zayne when I was a backyard wrestler,” he began. “When it was frowned upon to be called a backyard wrestler, because we were the dirt underneath everyone’s feet in the wrestling industry. But it does make me laugh now seeing how the world is with professional wrestling and all the backyarders I used to wrestle with are now on top of the world.”
Ospreay said Zayne is “just getting back from his excursion over in Orlando.” He’s curious if Zayne learned anything in NXT, or if he’s the same guy he grew up watching that he just outgrew.
This is a big challenge for the self-proclaimed Real IWGP World Heavyweight Champion, so we were curious what he’s doing to prepare for such a unique opponent.
“I’m trying to drop a little bit of weight, because I do know Alex. He’s very unorthodox. He reminds me of myself when i was a Junior Heavyweight, so i’m trying to drop down some weight, so that way I can move a bit quicker. I think we’re roughly about the same height and the same build, but if I outpace him and I know I can strike harder than him. His strikes aren’t nearly as polished and clean as mine.”
Opsreay questions if Zayne will be able to fight ‘dirty enough’ to hang with him, because he remembers Zayne as being a clean cut wrestler who just wanted to be liked by the fans. “I mean, I was in that position a long time, I’m just not that guy anymore,” he said. “If I get a shot to give you an elbow to the back of the head, I’m going to do it.”
Ospreay really wants to pick up a victory here and knows that he’ll have to be ready for Alex Zayne’s high-flying move-set.
“He can do the same tricks that I used to be able to do when I was 15kg’s lighter and I think we’re roughly the same body weight, so his acrobatics are going to have more impact behind them. So, I’m definitely going to keep me eye on when he does ascend to the top rope, because that’s when i’m going to be at my most vulnerable.”
Will Ospreay is fed up with people like CM Punk, Kenny Omega, Bryan Danielson and others dropping his name.
The self-proclaimed “real” IWGP World Heavyweight Champion is gearing up for a clash against Alex Zayne. That match will take place at NJPW Showdown, a 2-night event taking place October 16th & 17th from Philadelphia’s historic 2300 Arena.
Ospreay spoke to SEScoops correspondent Samira this week about his preparation for that event, why he can’t stand American wrestling fans, and much more.
When asked who he wants to wrestle in the months ahead, ‘Big Match Billy’ named Kazuchika Okada as the only person he cares about from Japan. “The guy’s been ducking me for a while now,” he said.
However, there are several other people on his radar. Ospreay tells SEScoops that he’d “love” to wrestle CM Punk, as well as some of the other AEW stars who have called him out in recent months.
Ospreay Ready to Embarrass AEW’s Top Stars
CM Punk named Will Ospreay as someone he’d like to work with during a March 2020 appearance on the Swing & Mrs. Podcast. Punk is now an active competitor for AEW, bringing this potential dream match one step closer to reality.
“I would still love that match with CM Punk,” he began. “He’s the one that called me out. He said, ‘I want to wrestle Will Ospreay.’ So with that, Bryan Danielson, he said ‘I want to wrestle Will Ospreay’ and I get it. Kenny Omega wants to wrestle Will Ospreay. Take a ticket and I’ll get to you when I get to you guys. They called me out. Sammy Guevara, he’s another one that called me out.”
He continued, “There’s a list that goes on and on and on. They all call me out and there’s a reason why. Because when Big Match Billy is in town, their stock goes up. Everyone that wrestles me – and you can’t deny it – every single person that wrestles me ups their game because they know they’re going to be in the ring with one of the best wrestlers in the world right now. So, I completely understand it.”
These Guys Don’t Want Me To Show Up
Ospreay continued railing against Punk, Danielson, and Omega.
“If you guys really want it that bad, you know what to do. You just gotta call my number and I’ll show up. I’ll show up. But 9 times out of 10, these guys don’t want me to show up. Because A, I’ll embarrass them. I’ll embarrass them.”
“Guys like Bryan Danielson made a living being one of the best wrestlers in the world. But if I showed up, he would not last in the ring with me. Kenny Omega was THE guy in New Japan Pro Wrestling. He left. I took over. Nobody could compete with me in 2019. If I got in the ring with him, I’d embarrass him.”
Best in the World
CM Punk
“CM Punk called me out when he wasn’t a wrestler. So in that case, he was keeping an eye on me the entire time, looking at me and thinking I’m a challenge – and damn right, I’m a challenge. I’m THE challenge. So, if those guys want it, I’m ready. But, you guys hit me up. I didn’t hit none of you guys up.”
Ospreay took offense to the notion that CM Punk could still be considered the best in the world. “Is he though? He says he’s the best wrestler in the world. When was he saying that, 2011? Was he the best in the world, or was he the best of the bad bunch? Maybe you were the best at that time. Are you the best now? No. You’re nowhere near Will Ospreay’s level. So step up, brother. I’m ready for you.”
X Division Champion Josh Alexander doesn’t know if he’ll ever get to face Impact World Champion Kenny Omega, but if he does, he thinks he beats Omega 99 times out of 100.
SEScoops correspondent Mike Shalik spoke with the Walking Weapon last week about a wide variety of topics, including:
How Impact Wrestling has changed since he joined in 2019
His vision for the X Division, as champion
Injuries in wrestling and how his neck is doing
The feeling in the locker room about outside talent appearing in Impact
A possible Impact x AEW x New Japan super-show
Ambitions to wrestle in Japan
Josh Alexander vs. Kenny Omega?
We also asked Josh Alexander about his recent back encounter with Kenny Omega on Impact TV. He says fans blew up his social media at the prospect of this match, but he doesn’t think Omega would ever agree to fight him. If they did cross paths inside the squared circle, Alexander is convinced he beats the Belt Collector 99 times out of 100.
“I do not think Kenny Omega wants to face me,” he said. “I don’t think he has any intention of ever getting in the ring with me. So I think him chirping and saying his little comments like that, that’s just his way to try to get a rise out of me and everybody else.”
Alexander continued, “It gets people talking and wanting the match. I think my social media blew up more than probably anything ever has before, just in the anticipation for that possibly being a match, so it’s what people want to see. It’s good for business and it’s good for everybody else. I think it’s something that should happen. whether it does or not, not up to me, unfortunately. If that match ever were to happen, I would bet on me 99 times out of 100.”
Major League Wrestling returned to live wrestling last Saturday night for their Battle Riot III from the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, PA.
I was on-hand at the Battle Riot as a correspondent for SEScoops where I spoke with a few MLW wrestlers and one being Calvin Tankman.
When I asked if he was happy to be at the famous 2300 Arena for his first taping, Tankman answered that it was a dream come true.
“Definitely. My first taping with fans and it’s in a legendary arena where you know, growing up you watch a lot of matches and moments from this very place and dream of wrestling here. So, definitely a dream come true to finally get the opportunity,” Tankman said.
The discussion then moved onto me asking Tankman about who he hopes to wrestle with in MLW by the end of 2021. Tankman names Alex Kane, but then goes on to talk about current MLW World Heavyweight Champion, Jacob Fatu.
“I think I got a little screwed in the title match, so I think there is something to be said with round two with me and Fatu. I mean if anything was proven, it’s that his crown was threatened,” Tankman said.
Other topics discussed include wanting to wrestle Alex Hammerstone, Rhyno/Rhino giving him advice on which cheesesteak place to go to in Philadelphia, and more.
You can watch MLW’s Battle III for free on July 24th with beIN SPORTS or on MLW’s YouTube channel at 10 p.m. EST.
QT Marshall spoke with SEScoops this week to promote Wednesday’s special Blood and Guts edition of AEW Dynamite on TNT.
The leader of The Factory faces his former friend, Cody Rhodes, at Blood and Guts. During our discussion, QT explained why he turned on Cody, athletes like Anthony Ogogo crossing over to the world of professional wrestling, how The Factory is different than other factions and more.
Topics discussed include:
His role as AEW’s Director of Creative coordination
AEW gearing up for the post-pandemic era
His Nightmare Factory training facility
What he looks for in trainees
Athletes and celebrities crossing over to pro wrestling
Why he turned on Cody Rhodes
How The Factory stands apart from AEW’s other factions
Brodie Lee spoke with SEScoops.com last week ahead of his title match with Jon Moxley at Double or Nothing. Amongst other topics, Brodie spoke about going from being unfertilized in WWE to headlining a PPV with a new company.
“It’s very gratifying, it’s awesome, it’s exactly what I wanted, it’s exactly what I craved, it’s exactly what I desired,” Brodie said. “It’s everything I ever wanted it to be.”
Brodie would continue to say, however, that now the pressure on him is to deliver in his new role.
“So, now the pressure becomes on me because this is what I asked for, this is what I told people I could do,” he continued. “So now the pressure is on me to either put up or shut up. There’s an added pressure but also I believe that pressure will help make me better and I’m not afraid of the pressure.”
The “Empty Arena Era”
Brodie Lee made his AEW debut on the March 18th episode of Dynamite. That episode was originally supposed to take place from Rochester, NY, his hometown.
Lee revealed that AEW President Tony Khan gave him the option of delaying his debut until things got back to normal, since his big homecoming was not meant to be. He decided to debut on March 18th as planned and make the best of it.
“That’s kind of one of the things I was most looking forward to,” he said about AEW’s live crowds. “I was supposed to make my debut in Rochester, New York on March 18th. They had a really good presale crowd there and then the next week would be in New Jersey, which I think they had 12,000 tickets sold there. So, I was looking to jump right in into the huge aspect of AEW and the fans and the passion. Unfortunately, of course, that turned out to be too good to be true because everything happened on March 11th right before my debut.”
He then mentioned that AEW told him his debut could be pushed back.
“I was told ‘you don’t have to debut, you can wait, we can push it back.’ but at the same time, nobody knew how long that would be and I had been caged up and a stray cat for so long and just kind of left out that I was ready to be a professional wrestler again, I was ready to be a performer again, I was ready to work on my craft and there was no hesitation in me at all to jump right into it.”
“Tony, like I said, Tony gave me the option to hold it off but I think me and Matt Hardy we’re on the same page, we’re ready to hit the ground running.”
AEW Behind The Scenes
AEW stars such as Chris Jericho and Jon Moxley have said that AEW is less scripted and more open to input from performers than previous companies they have worked for. Brodie also commented on this aspect of his new company.
“That’s exactly it. There’s a lot of collaboration but it’s a lot of, I guess friendly collaboration. It’s not like ‘hey do this’ it’s ‘hey, what do you think of this idea?’ and then if I don’t like it, I tell them and it’s a conversation and we go from there.”
“Same thing with promos, it’s like there’s no written script. It’s like here’s the kind of point we need to get across. You say it how you want to say it. It’s your character, you’re fleshing out the character the way you want to which is incredibly refreshing because I was never able to flesh out a character for the past…I was a very one-dimensional character. I said my promo I think it was 2 weeks ago was the first time I’d spoken on a live mic at a professional wrestling show in the past 8 years, almost combined. Again, there’s a certain pressure to it because it’s on you now, there’s nobody left to blame.”
“Again, it’s a different element but it’s a very cool, creative element that helps you sleep at night.”
AEW Changing Course Due To Pandemic
Brodie Lee came to AEW at a time when some on the roster was unable to attend tapings due to travel restrictions. We asked what he knows about AEW changing course creatively as a result of the current climate.
“I think certain things with people not being able to be there maybe got put on hold,” he said. “I’m not privy to that information. I know that Jon Moxley presented us a situation for me to jump at and that’s what I did. So, I can’t worry about hurt feelings about people that didn’t show up to the show and didn’t get the opportunity, I can’t worry about that, I can only worry about myself. But, that said, hopefully, the way I handled things and the way that I performed changed some people’s minds as well if I wasn’t supposed to be in this position.”
Talent He Wants to Work With in AEW
Finally, we wanted to know about which young talent Brodie Lee wants to work with in AEW.
“Every person on the roster is a fresh match-up for me. At the top of that list would be Kenny and the Young Bucks. Watched them work, been friends with the Young Bucks for a long time. I’ve always told them that they had these unbelievable matches in Japan.”
“It’d be a thrill to get in there and test myself against guys like that.
“Darby Allin, a guy like that, a guy like Jungle Boy. Even people like the Proud and Powerful, they are fun for me to watch, I think they are wonderful workers. Jericho, Cody, so these people even who I have history with, Shawn Spears even, these guys that I have history with to now do it in a different environment is very appealing to me.”
Brodie then went back on a previous comment. He joked, “I take that back, anybody but Shawn Spears, if you could put that quote in.”
Order AEW Double or Nothing at BR Live (US) and FITE.TV (Internationally).
Brodie Lee challenges Jon Moxley for the AEW World Championship this Saturday night at AEW Double or Nothing.
Just days before the biggest match of his career, The Exalted One spoke with SEScoops about how he’s preparing for the bout.
“It’s a lot of cardio right now,” he began. “Having not been in the ring for the better part of a year almost, I think I had 7 matches last year in WWE and maybe 3 at the end of the year and then 0. I’ve had 1 match over 3 minutes this year. So, it’s a lot of cardio, a lot of preparing myself for a long battle.”
“I know exactly what Jon Moxley is going to bring. He’s very violent, he likes to punch you in the face right away. So I think that’ll snap me out of any kind of slumber I might be in real quick. And I know he’s going to bring a level of violence that I have to be prepared for and I am prepared for that because I’m not afraid of violence.”
He then revealed that his wife is concerned about what will transpire at Double or Nothing.
“Before I left the house on Tuesday, my wife told me ‘you and Jon Moxley scare me.’ I think she knows and hopefully the fans know that when we link it up it’s going to be something, I guess, terrible, is a good description.”
There’s no doubt that Jon Moxley will bring the violence. However, Brodie Lee feels he has the advantage when it comes to size, agility and instability.
“I know I have the size advantage, I maybe have the agility advantage,” he continued. “He probably thinks he’s a little more violent than me but there’s definitely something wrong up here [in his head].”
Thanks to Brodie Lee for chatting with us. You can check out our full interview below.
Order AEW Double or Nothing at BR Live (US) and FITE.TV (Internationally). Catch AEW Dynamite Wednesday nights on TNT.
Earlier this week, we had a chance to speak with the #1 contender to the AEW World Championship, “The Exalted One” Brodie Lee. He faces Jon Moxley in the main event of Saturday night’s AEW Double or Nothing pay-per-view.
We had the chance to sit down with AEW’s Brodie Lee recently for an exclusive interview. During the discussion, we asked Brodie about the possibility of his former teammate Erick Rowan‘s recent release from WWE.
“I think Erick’s a wonderful human being, he’s a wonderful father, which is strange to say if you look at him,” he said jokingly. “We weren’t always the best of friends early on in our tenure together but we became really good friends by the end. Somehow we always seem to find each other, at least for the last 8 years.”
Brodie Lee then continued to talk about what might come next for some of the recent WWE releases.
“I think it’s going to be very refreshing to him and a guy like Zack Ryder/Matt Cardona, I think it’s going to be very refreshing to them to be out of that bubble and to understand now the freedom that they have creatively. Ryder especially, who’s done it before on his own, he’s one of the most creative people you’ll ever meet.”
“As soon as I was released, it’s almost a weight off your shoulders. WWE gives you so much but as soon as its over, it’s almost either panic or opportunity arises. It can be both but you have to learn to adjust and take it in as it comes.”
Lee then said he feels Erick Rowan likely has a run in Japan coming up. Rowan has a history wrestling in the country, having trained at the Pro Wrestling NOAH dojo earlier in his career.
“I think Erick Rowan is almost tailor-made for a Japan run. I don’t know if we’ll ever find each other over there because that would be pretty cool. Or if we’ll find each other in AEW, who knows? I think there’s going to be a lot of opportunity for these guys.”
Order AEW Double or Nothing at BR Live (US) and FITE.TV (Internationally). Catch AEW Dynamite Wednesday nights on TNT.
Check out our full 18-minute interview with The Exalted One, Brodie Lee:
Alexander Hammerstone has made a big impact in Major League Wrestling since his arrival in early 2019.
Shortly after arriving in MLW, he aligned himself with MJF and Richard Holiday to form the Dynasty faction. He won the tournament to crown MLW’s first National Openweight champion – a title he still holds to this day. Hammerstone is one of the most agile heavyweights in all of pro wrestling. It is easy to see how he’s climbed the ranks of the MLW fight league so quickly.
We recently had a chance to speak with Hammerstone for an extended interview. Topics discussed include changing up his persona prior to joining MLW, his first year with the company, the Dynasty and much more.
You can listen to our full interview with Hammerstone below:
Hammerstone’s First Year In MLW, Reinventing Himself
The 6’4″ hoss from Glendale, AZ first arrived on the scene in MLW in January 2019.
Hammerstone explains that his first year in MLW brought him the most success and notoriety of his decade-long career. Prior to MLW, Hammerstone cut his teeth in Paragon Pro Wrestling and Ring Warriors, among other smaller promotions. That experience helped him put his best foot forward and make something happen on the big stage.
Just before signing with MLW, Hammerstone changed up his look and his attitude. He cut his hair, shook off the bootleg Triple H comparisons and let his personality shine through.
“I’ve always been a guy who loves doing character stuff and promo stuff, backstage vignettes and stuff of that nature,” he said. “So, that alone wasn’t new, but the way we were going with it was kind of new. For a lot of years, I presented myself a lot differently. I tried really hard to play a certain type of pro wrestler and I got kind of pigeonholed into playing this big tough guy, ‘I’m gonna beat you up’ type of character. It wasn’t one dimensional, but it was limited in what I could do with it. Finally, right before I signed with MLW, I just threw that away and said, ‘I’m just going to be myself, I’m just going to do what I like. I’m gonna try to do what I enjoy and what I think is entertaining without following any guidelines that I’m supposed to follow.'”
The Dynasty
After getting a few singles wins under his belt he aligned himself with Maxwell J. Friedman and Richard Holiday. The trio were among MLW’s breakout stars last year. They held championship gold and relished in the creative freedom they were given.
“Luckily, I got thrown into some good stories right off the bat,” Hammerstone said about his arrival in MLW. “It was only a couple weeks of TV before we began forming The Dynasty. Once that got going, it was like there was a rocket on our butts and it’s been an upward trajectory ever since.”
He continued, “The best parts of The Dynasty have been when we’re just playing off each other. It wasn’t a new thing to do promos. But it was a new thing to just be myself and enjoy it and watch things blossom in their own natural way.”
On recent episodes of MLW Fusion, Hammerstone and Richard Holiday’s exploits while on tour in Mexico were highly entertaining. In one segment, they were shown in a Tiajuana hotel room, hungover from attending a ‘donkey show’ the previous night before.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xCffVjEbLU
Creative Freedom in MLW
Hammerstone explained how those segments came together.
“I think there was a general idea of what direction the Dynasty was going to go in, when it was first formed,” he said. “And then it just took wild left turn after wild left turn and pretty soon it became its own strange monster. At first, it was like they were trying to tighten up the leash and control it. Then, once it got out of control, they realized they couldn’t stop us and they were just gonna let us do whatever we want to do.”
He continued, “A lot of the one-liners and segments people fondly remember were things we were specifically told, ‘You probably shouldn’t do that’ but luckily, starting out, I showed up to the company wanting to be respectful. But I’d say Max, MJF, probably had a good part in that. He was the type of guy where, we’d shoot a promo and it turned out way off the rails, way far away from what they intended it to be. And it was hilarious, but they’d say, ‘Ok, maybe we do another one without …’ and he’d just say, ‘Nope, that’s it’ and walk away and be gone, so there was no, ‘Ok, we’re going to reshoot that.’
From that point on, it really became, ‘The Dynasty is going to be the Dynasty, we’re going to do what we think is right, we’re gonna say the silly things we want to say and there’s not much you can do to stop it.’ And if they did, it would probably be way less entertaining.'”
Gino Medina has since joined the Dynasty faction, with MJF recently being forced to leave MLW after losing a ‘Loser Leaves Town’ match to Mance Warner.
Jon Moxley believes there are endless possibilities ahead for the 20+ wrestlers recently released by WWE.
The AEW World Champion spoke with SEScoops earlier this week to promote his role in Cagefighter: Worlds Collide. The film premieres on FITE pay-per-view Saturday night, May 16th for fans outside the United States. A domestic release is planned for later this year. Moxley plays Randy Stone, a pro wrestler who crosses over into the world of mixed martial arts. Moxley told us that he relates to Randy Stone, who he described as ‘kind of an a-hole’ with a chip on his shoulder.
We asked Jon Moxley if he thinks AEW should sign some of the Superstars who were laid off by WWE last month. We also got his take on AEW’s impact on the wrestling industry at large.
Jon Moxley on WWE Releases
WWE released and furloughed over 30 people in April. Many of the released performers could be strong additions to All Elite Wrestling, whether in the ring or behind the scenes.
We asked Jon Moxley if AEW should considering signing some of them, or if he thinks AEW should focus on developing their current roster.
“Everybody in wrestling, you kind of generally end up where you’re supposed to end up,” Moxley began. “That’s just kind of how it goes. The cool thing is that, of all the kind of current free agents who are unfortunately on the market at an unfortunate time? Once the world kind of goes back to normal and stuff? Now [companies] are all gonna have all these great talents.”
Getting released by WWE is the end of the road for some. It marks a new beginning for others. We’ve already seen The Revival, Gallows & Anderson, Matt Cardona (Zack Ryder), EC3 and others set the stage for the next chapter of their careers.
Jon Moxley says he would not simply sign former WWE talent and plug them right into AEW programming. He thinks the talent needs time to branch out and evolve.
“It’s not like I’m just gonna plug this person in here and then put them into AEW and it’s gonna be the same thing,” he said. “You can’t even think like that because you have no idea what these people are going to become. They may become totally new characters, they may branch into a different style. It may be the best version of all 20 of those people, we’ve yet to see. It’s endless possibilities, and you just kind of have to see what the future holds.”
We asked Jon Moxley what his friends in WWE think about AEW. He hasn’t gotten much feedback specifically about the AEW product, but a few people said it looks like he’s having fun.
“I haven’t really got much feedback or opinion on anything like that from anybody within WWE,” Moxley began. “Just in general, just like ‘Happy for you, looks like you’re having fun, keep killing it’ kind of thing. I don’t really know what the opinion and situation is. But I do know that … in terms of business? Obviously nothing’s gonna change in the last month or two, but from the time AEW came in the picture? All positive things have happened for the business all across the board.”
He elaborated on AEW having a positive impact on the industry. “People in WWE have gotten new and better contracts or new and better schedules. NXT is live on TV now as a direct result of that [AEW Dynamite] so that’s a great opportunity for those people. I think it’s just good for everybody. It’s good for the whole business, so I don’t see how there could be any negative thoughts whatsoever. I think everybody’s loving that the business is still kind of on fire right now.”
Catch Jon Moxley in Cagefighter: Worlds Collide on Saturday, May 16th at FITE.TV.
AEW World Champion Jon Moxley stars in the new movie Cagefighter: World Collide. Moxley plays Randy Stone, a pro wrestler who crosses over into the world of mixed martial arts. Cagefighter premieres exclusively on FITE Pay-Per-View Saturday night, May 16th for fans outside the US. A domestic release is planned for later this year.
Jon Moxley spoke with SEScoops this week about the project. Moxley discussed how former WWE Superstar Christian , identifying with his character Randy Stone and why the Cagefighter story is especially timely with everything going on in the world right now.
Jon Moxley’s Role in Cagefighter
Moxley revealed that former WWE Superstar Christian reached out to him about playing Randy Stone. “You know I originally got a call from Christian,” he began. “He was working as executive producer on this. He was the first one to reach out to me and throw my name out there for this role.”
Moxley told Christian to send him the script and immediately felt, “Yeah, I can play that guy. Because you know the character as is written? He’s kind of a…he’s basically a jerk. Kind of an a**hole. There’s an unapproachable kind of chip on his shoulder. A kind of bristly quality to him that is not unlike what I may have been when I was younger.”
He would go into how the character mimicked elements of himself and would mesh perfectly with the antagonist character of Randy Stone.
“I am…at my worst times? I can sometimes not be the most approachable guy in the world. Combine that with trying to bring a bit more of the over the top, full of himself, talking, big ego kind of always a pro wrestler thing? It’s kind of a combination of those two things; being the super obnoxious guy who just runs his mouth so much you want to see him get his clock cleaned by the end of the film. Combine that with a little bit of my chip on your shoulder, kind of bristly real life personality? That’s kind of what I tried to bring to it.”
Ad Libbing His Lines
All Elite Wrestling provides its wrestlers the ability to cut promos without over-scripting. Moxley has praised this aspect of the AEW creative process.
Film acting is traditionally a more structured format. Jon Moxley was given the leeway to ‘ad lib’ most of his lines in Cagefighter.
“Cool thing for me was so much of my lines in this movie are ad libs,” he said. “They just really gave me the freedom to just kind of say whatever I want. As far as, talking trash and cutting promos and stuff like that. We had a scene where we did a press conference and all these different interviews. Where I’m talking trash to them. It was really fun to just kind of be able to be obnoxious and say whatever thing comes to your head. It was really fun.”
Cagefighter & Today’s Climate
Jon Moxley feels the film is suitable for the current world climate, with the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic still causing many to lose jobs.
“Basically the the story of the movie? It’s kind of apropos for right now; this guy hits the skids, and the worst thing that could happen to him happens that he’d never imagined could happen. He hits rock bottom and he’s ruined in every sense. Personally, professionally and financially. He’s embarrassed, and he has to climb all the way back up to the top. To where he was before, and a redemption story like that is kind of a good message to send right now I think. So many people are being affected by these crazy times, financial or worse.”
He elaborated on this point further, saying “I think it’s gonna probably still have lingering effects for the next year or two or longer. People have lost their jobs, businesses have shut down. People have been laid off. You know people are taking hits right now, so any kind of message of perseverance? Picking yourself up and dusting yourself off? Tough times won’t last forever, you just gotta get back to the grind and do it. I think that a good message to send right now.”
Jon Moxley says he has not yet seen the film, but will be watching live on FITE pay-per-view onMay 16th. “I myself haven’t even seen it yet because I’m waiting till May 16 to watch it with everybody else, and kind of experience it all together on the night of the premiere so it’s very, very exciting.”
