Over the past week, WWE Hall of Famer Kevin Nash has come out strongly against WWE’s parent company TKO Group Holdings, primarily because he feels the corporation is interfering with his long-time friend Triple H’s creative direction. But it’s not the only reason Nash has turned against TKO, as he’s also criticized the release of WWE talent, and reports that some talents have taken pay cuts in order to avoid being released.
Nash is so strongly against it that on “Kliq This” he suggested WWE talents should either unionize, or seek to join the Screen Actors Guild in order to protect themselves.
“Get a bunch of guys together, take one of the programs that’s written down, and you tell me that that program isn’t more heavily written and more produced than ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ was, when all those actors went on that show got SAG pay,” Nash said. “So why don’t you guys go and see if you can get unionized. Go through the Screen Actors Guild. They’ll be more than happy to take your f*****g cut of your money. It won’t be 50%, but it’ll change the ballgame.
“And if one thing Endeavor does know, because it’s all Endeavor’s deal. Endeavor knows that game. That’s what they do. That’s the home run. So if they’re all so good at that game, let the boys play by those rules. You know the game. You can’t have it both ways. You can’t play Endeavor at the f*****g top with the 300% increases, and f*****g 1099 the dock workers that are f*****g Brad Pitt and f*****g Pacino. You can’t do both.”
Thus, it was no surprise Nash expressed support for New Day’s Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods when a fan question asked if they did the right thing getting their release after refusing a pay cut.
“Absolutely,” Nash said. “Absolutely. They made their choice, and I…I mean, both those guys have been there sixteen, seventeen years. It’s a slap in the face. Both those guys are friends.”
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Kliq This” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription
Opinion: Wrestlers Should Unionize (But They Won’t)
I must admit, I never thought the day would come where Kevin Nash of all people would say wrestlers need to unionize. But hey, he’s said it and he’s right, although I’m not sure I’m going to give him a cookie for stating the obvious. I know this is a sticky subject for some fans for whatever reason, but in my eyes, wrestlers should’ve unionized eons ago. It’s almost comical how behind the times the business is with this; save for UFC (coincidentally owned by the same people who own WWE), I cannot think of a sports league or an entertainment field that doesn’t have a union or guild that enables their players, actors, writers, directors, producers, whatever to receive benefits and protections. It’s long overdue that wrestling should join the 21st century by having the wrestlers unionize, receive actual benefits, and put the independent contractor nonsense out to pasture.
The problem is that it will take a miracle for that to happen, and I don’t see any miracles in sight. Perhaps I’m too jaded, but then again I’ve heard this old song and dance before, and not just from Jesse Ventura’s attempt in the 80s that Hulk Hogan helped kill. In his famous “Art of Wrestling” podcast, CM Punk pushed for wrestlers to organize; now he’s happily taking a WWE paycheck again, seemingly oblivious to his previous stance. Zelina Vega once suggested unionizing after WWE fired her years ago; months later, she re-signed with the company. That’s the attitude of most wrestlers it seems, with the closest to breaking that trend being David Starr at the end of the 2010s/early2020s. Naturally, Starr is now out of the business for being credibly accused of many things during Speaking Out, calling into question his “union” beliefs, with no one picking up the mantle in the aftermath. So yeah; wrestlers should unionize. Forgive me if I have no faith that they will given the rest of wrestling history.
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