As documented by Ringside News , Vince McMahon took part in an investors call on Thursday, and he was asked a variety of questions about WWE . During the conversation, one caller asked him about the recent decline in ratings and how the company will go about turning them around in both the short and long-term.
McMahon stressed how audience interaction is always a plus and integral to WWE’s success. According to the chairman, television ratings are a major part of the company’s engagement with the fans, and he has some ideas for how to bring back absent viewers.
According to McMahon, the company can be more creative. He also stated that fans will soon get to find out more about some of their favorite superstars through different mediums of content.
“I think that we can have characters with better storylines, we have new characters coming in to where we are right now, and more content that’s not necessarily in-ring, but focusing on their personalities and their stories outside of the ring.”
McMahon’s words suggest that the future product will place more focus on gimmicks, as opposed to presenting the roster in a more realistic manner.
While he wasn’t clear about his plans, the “new characters” comment could also mean that some current performers will be repackaged, in addition to newcomers being called up to the main roster from NXT.
Those plans may already be in motion as well. As The Inquisitr recently noted, Aleister Black has reportedly been taken off of television because McMahon wants to add more layers to his gimmick. The Dutch performer’s repackaging could be one of many character-focused retoolings for roster members.
The chairman is also planning to give opportunities to underutilized performers . Some of WWE’s top main eventers will be absent for the foreseeable future due to the pandemic, injuries and family reasons, which means there could be more pushes for stars who want to grab the proverbial brass ring.
Last week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown teased a strong solo push for Big E in the coming weeks. However, one wrestler can’t bring back viewers overnight, and McMahon’s latest revelation indicates that more sports entertainers will be given a chance to shine.
The Ringside News report also highlighted how the current ratings decline has caused the promotion’s stock to drop. This will undoubtedly encourage McMahon to take action, as he has plenty of reasons to worry about his business interests at the moment.