Tony Khan reveals the incredible story behind the Young Bucks' new Succession-inspired gimmick

20/04/2024 03:56

When the Young Bucks re-debuted in AEW under a brand new gimmick, wearing suits, using their “legal” names, and just generally taking their spots as EVPs way too seriously on Tony Khan‘s weekly show, it drew one comparison above all others: the Roy siblings from HBO’s Succession.

Now granted, there have been business-themed gimmicks in wrestling before, with Kiana James working on one in NXT right now and everyone from Triple H to Seth Rollins and even Kane working for The Corporation in WWE, but this particular gimmick felt more in line with what Warner Brothers Discovery was doing on HBO in one of the highest-rated shows of all time.

But why? Certainly, this couldn’t have been a coincidence, especially with that theme song, but was the idea from Warner? A sort of 21st-century example of corporate synergy? Or did the idea come from Kazuchika Okada, who could have ushered in this new era of the Young Bucks as part of his defection from New Japan Pro Wrestling?

Discussing the change on the AEW Dynasty media call, Khan revealed that the decision actually took some time to come together and even earned an endorsement from the man behind Succession, show creator Jesse Armstrong, who just so happens to be Tony Khan’s good friend.

“I was very fortunate to befriend Jesse Armstrong. He got caught by the wrestling media sitting with me at a Fulham match. In addition to being a Fulham supporter, he's a brilliant brilliant writer and a really nice guy. I've enjoyed talking to him. He, inadvertently, helped inspire this change. Matt and Nick mentioned to me, we were talking about changes for 2024, and they asked about something inspired by Succession,” Tony Khan explained via Fightful.

“I had a meeting with them and a lot of the team in Jacksonville on January 10, and it was surreal because Matt, Nick, and I have spent weeks of our lives in this office in Jacksonville, and I had a big vision for where we would go. They had an idea of a presentation that was their idea, and it's been tremendous, of utilizing Succession. I was able to tell Jesse straight up to his face that there are wrestlers on our show that are very inspired by Succession and their theme song may or may not be similar to the Succession theme song. He was very kind about it. Matt and Nick brought it up, and I thought it was a great idea. I'm such a big Succession fan. We started working on it late last year and January 10 we had this meeting, it was a good meeting, and I laid out ideas for upcoming events. So far, it has all played out exactly like we talked about. I'm really excited on where we're at now.”

Now, for fans in the know, Succession is a show about siblings who compete to replace their father as the head of a media conglomerate, with plenty of drama, backstabbing, and even laughs along the way. While the idea of being corporate heels has been very successful for the Bucks and Okada, one has to wonder if the Jackson brothers will eventually betray each other, too, as that was a very common occurrence on the show.

Tony Khan discusses his own Succession plan in AEW.

Speaking of succession in AEW, lowercase, Tony Khan was asked if he has a plan in place for when he decides he needs to step down as a booker or at least take on a lesser role due to all of his other obligations. While Khan, as a businessman, has considered all options on the table, for now, he’s happy to be the man calling the shots in AEW, as, at 41, he’s having the time of his life.

“Certainly, at some point, we would have to see where we're at. With all positions, nobody lasts forever, and eventually, that's something, with any position in any organization I'm in will be a reality. Whether it's the Jaguars, Fulham, AEW, or True Media. I won't be here forever. It's definitely one of the highlights of my life, being involved in these shows, work on these shows, and do creative planning. I'm having more fun than ever right now. I take it year to year, moment to moment, and really love what we're doing right now. I'm only 41 years old, and I feel like the company is in a strong place and some of the greatest wrestlers in the world are loyal to me personally, and I'm really proud of that, and hopefully, I can continue to do my best to repay them,” Tony Khan told reporters via Fightful.

“Right now, I think the company is in a strong place. We just had a valuation of $2 billion placed on AEW for a sports start-up. The fastest-rising sports start-up of all time and the most successful sports start-up in the world since the AFL, that later merged with the NFL. I don't see that same future for us, but I do love the comparison, and I think the numbers are quite real, and the story is exciting for AEW. We are a major player in the sports scene, and it's going to be a big year for our company with our media rights renewal, and it's the most important thing right now for the wrestlers, staff, and everyone that works at AEW and for our fans.”

Welp, there you go, folks; while some fans want nothing more than to see Khan step down as the AEW booker, assuming the promotion will magically become exactly what they want with, say, Scott D’Amore or Bryan Danielson holding the pencil, in the end, TK started AEW, and he isn’t giving up creative control any time soon.

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