Vince Russo left WWE for WCW in 1999. He became the head of creative for the company but his time with WCW is not well-reviewed by many. Jim Ross was recently asked about Russo on an episode of his Grillin JR podcast.
According to JR, there was interest from WWE’s end in bringing Russo back when things fell apart for the first time between him and WCW in 2000.
“I want to say that there was some interest in bringing Russo back, I also want to say that I thought that maybe he came back to Stamford for a meeting with the old man. I can’t remember all the details, I’m a little foggy.”
“He had not destroyed a bridge, he could have come back and I think he wanted to come back,” JR said about Russo and WWE in 2000.
“There was an interest in bringing him back and seeing if he could recreate his magic and all that stuff. But for whatever reason, whether it be money or job description or whatever, I don’t know that the job to be the head writer was available to him. When a guy’s driven the wagon, you don’t want to sit in the other seat.”
Russo did have some negotiations with WWE and was actually employed for a 2-week period by the company in 2002 before leaving for TNA.
JR’s comments can be heard in the player below: