The new Senior Vice President and Co-Executive Producer of AEW, Mike Mansury, recently made an appearance on the podcast “The Sessions with Renee Paquette” and discussed a variety of topics, including how AEW production is more like a legitimate sport, what he has planned for the new presentation, and more.
The highlights of the podcast are listed below:
AEW production is more like legitimate sport:
“It’s a little interesting because it’s only been a week. I had my observation glasses on. A lot of how AEW is brought together is very reminiscent of legitimate sport. Boxing, MMA, baseball, et cetera. The way even the production crew approaches it. It’s very much put together like sport. Coming from what I’ve just done [MMA in Singapore], it’s a nice fit for me to slide right in, get involved and get my hands dirty with the team.”
On the collaboration between talent in AEW:
“Creatively, I love seeing the talent being so unbelievably collaborative. I’m not saying this as a negative difference between WWE or AEW. I think it’s something that both have. But having been removed from wrestling for the past couple years, to come back and see even the more established names on the roster; how much they’re unleashing their creative prowess not just for themselves but for like the other folks on the team. It’s been really cool to see.”
On being excited for the new presentation:
“This was already in the works before I arrived. There’s a whole new presentation planned for what the show is going to look like starting next year. There’s a lot of cool stuff on the horizon that makes this a very exciting time. That itch that I’ve had for the last two and a half to three years is about to be getting a good scratch.”
On wanting to bring back unpredictability:
“I miss the unpredictable nature of live TV. I feel like that’s something that’s been lacking for a time because for a while, there was really nobody but WWE. And now here comes this strong powerhouse in AEW that’s become a viable place for people to go and work.”
On the importance of character and story:
“The two big things you need are characters and story. When you have characters that people are invested in and storylines that they’re invested in, that’s the stuff that’s gonna resonate with your fanbase. Throw in some cool matches in between and watch some cool shit, but without story, without characters, how are we using those elements to distinguish a roster that is stacked with talented staff from left to right? To be able to offer a new way to present that, or to tweak what we’ve been doing, to hopefully create moments that are going to stand out in fans’ minds so that the watercooler talk that everybody is always chasing… to be able to bring that back, to make wrestling the destination again? That’s the goal.”
