WWE’s deal with Netflix is expected to change the landscape of professional wrestling.
Beginning in January 2025, the streamer will be the new home of Monday Night RAW in the US, Canada, UK and Latin America, among other territories.
The deal marks a major programming shift as RAW leaves linear television for the first time since its inception 31 years ago.
Netflix will also become the home for all WWE weekly shows and specials outside the US, including WrestleMania, SummerSlam and the Royal Rumble.
Under the deal, it will pay $5 billion to air content from 2025 for a decade, with the option to exit the partnership after five years, or extend for a further 10.
With so much money on the line, Netflix will be hoping their flagship RAW show will provide must-watch television every single week.
And to make that happen, executives have reportedly requested at least three top WWE stars for the RAW roster.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select reports that Netflix have indicated their hopes that CM Punk, Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes will be on the show.
Rhodes is the current Undisputed WWE Champion, and already performs on RAW, so it’s unsurprising that the streamer wants to keep their biggest draw on the roster.
Punk and Reigns, meanwhile, are currently on the SmackDown roster, meaning that a shake-up could soon be on the cards.
If those three names are to feature on RAW, it will be up to the likes of Gunther, the current World Heavyweight Champion, to carry SmackDown going forward.
However, Fightful Select noted that the talent they have spoken to haven’t been informed about their respective brands, and that rosters for the Netflix move have not been finalized yet.
WWE’s Chief Content Officer, Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque, will have plenty of big decisions to make ahead of the move.
Speaking earlier this year, he described the Netflix deal as a “game-changing moment”.
“Netflix is a completely different animal,” Levesque said during an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show back in June.
“It’s a streaming service. How are commercials going to work? How are breaks going to work? What’s the length of time? What are the restrictions [and] what are not restrictions?
“The ability to be live globally; the ability to have everything seen all at once everywhere, it’s a game-changing moment.
“I think in many ways – not to disparage other partners because we want to be everywhere, but that’s sort of where the world is heading, right, is streaming services.”
