During this week’s SXSW 2024 “Disrupting the Long-Monopolized Pro Wrestling Industry,” AEW wrestler Bryan Danielson commented on the AEW Title Tuesday edition of Dynamite going head-to-head with a loaded episode of WWE NXT that featured John Cena, The Undertaker, and others.
You can check out some highlights from the SXSW panel below:
On how everyone looked at the Title Tuesday vs. NXT show: “I think everybody in the company was really proud of that show. In my mind, and this is probably different from the way Tony views it from a business perspective. I don’t necessarily look at what the competitors are doing. On that particular night, I wasn’t worried about it. My thing is, focus on what we do best. We do things differently, and our fanbase loves the way we do things. let’s embrace the things that we do really well and put on our best possible show and not worry about necessarily about what’s going on on a different channel.”
On how people will tune in if you put on an excellent wrestling show: “Realistically, it’s not just that particular Tuesday night. It’s every Wednesday and every week you’re battling something. You’re not just battling other shows. You’re battling people’s addiction to their phones and all sorts of things. How do you keep people’s attention? In my mind, it keeps going back to this idea of quality. Something I said when I first joined AEW is that if you put on excellent professional wrestling, people will tune in. That’s the goal weekly. Put on an excellent professional wrestling show.”
WWE NXT defeated AEW Dynamite on that night in overall viewership and the key demo ratings.
