In a recent press release, All Elite Wrestling announced that AEW Dynamite on TNT has been extended.
Per the agreement, the television partnership will be extended through 2023. This deal was also noteworthy in that a second TV program has been announced. In other words, Dynamite will not be the only show where AEW will have a platform. The specifics of the show in question are unknown, though it’s been rumored that it will take on a form similar to AEW Dark, which is currently on YouTube. This second program will add another hour of AEW television to its weekly block. It may also be on any Turner station, but it’s likely that it will air on TNT as well.
https://twitter.com/AEWrestling/status/1217484116230193152
Tony Khan, President and CEO of All Elite Wrestling, spoke positively about the news.
“When we launched AEW one year ago, we wanted to start a revolution that would disrupt the wrestling business, but everyone said that it would take a strong weekly television partner to make AEW real in the eyes of everyone—above all, the fans,” said Khan. “What virtually no one realized at the time was Kevin Relly and TNT were committed to this very same movement from Day One, and their belief in us made it possible for AEW to think and act big from the start.”
Kevin Reilly, President of TNT, weighed in on the news as well., “When Tony Khan first shared with me his idea of starting a new wrestling league, I was impressed with his audacity to go up against a contender that has been the only game in town for 20 years, and ultimately believed that together we could bring his vision of a new, authentic, gritty product to bear.”
Further details of this extended agreement were shared by Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. According to Meltzer, the four-year deal is worth $175 million; approximately $45 million per episode. In addition, there is a higher option for 2024, meaning that if AEW performs well, it’s possible that their next deal can be worth even more.
