There’s been a lot of talk about AEW’s future with Warner Bros. Discovery in recent months, but it was recently reported by PWInsider that a new deal between the two sides is not expected to be announced at the UpFronts this week.
Fightful Select is reporting that the announcement of a new deal is being kept close to the vest and it’s more likely to be announced in summer or fall. There’s no firm date on when it ends, but the exclusivity window between AEW and Warner Bros. Discovery continues into the summer.
A pilot for a new AEW show with WBD was set to be announced this week for social channels, but it’s unclear when it will be announced. According to the report it was described as not being a reality show.
Sources at Warner Bros. Discovery have indicated that they’ve been interested in adding AEW pay-per-views to MAX for some time now. The two sides have talked about what a potential deal would look like and some proposals were being made as far back as last year. It’s being said that now WBD does every deal with MAX in mind and there wasn’t as much focus on the streaming service when AEW signed their last deal.
If Warner Bros. Discovery loses the rights to the NBA then they will be looking to reinvest funds to maintain their position on cable. However, it’s unclear if that could affect AEW.
Stay tuned for updates.
