Ten Things We Learned From Brodie Lee On Talk Is Jericho

3. They offered him ‘Ungodly Money’ to stay

In the podcast, Lee reveals that every week, even in the few days leading up to his eventual release in December of last year, WWE continued to send him contracts, offering him, quote “ungodly money” to stay with the company.

He compares the offer they made him to one that they made to Rhyno, offering him wagons full of money, but also being explicitly clear that they were never going to use him, just so he couldn’t work somewhere else. Lee and Jericho discuss this mentality that WWE currently has, which is, keep everyone, don’t let anyone leave otherwise they all will.

Lee reveals that it was a tough choice for him, having a family to support. He had the option to make more money than he ever thought possible from wrestling even if that means sitting at home for months on end. Thankfully his wife supported him making the decision to not go crazy at home all the time, which is something we can all relate to, given the current circumstances.

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2. His AEW Contract Permits Him to Work Indie Dates and New Japan

If you put money to one side, AEW may seem like the promised land to several wrestlers currently on WWE’s books. If you’re a valuable commodity, you get a more relaxed atmosphere, no scripted promos, the chance for unparalleled creative input and fewer dates to work.

Cherry on the cake though, is that you also get to work a limited amount of other independent gigs, including New Japan Pro Wrestling, which Brodie Lee talks about as one of his main goals right now. He remembers fondly working in Dragon Gate, and actually rooming with PAC at the time. You remember PAC, he’s in Death Triangle, great group, terrible name, @ThisIsLukeOwen.

After all, Brodie Lee has fielded comparisons to Bruiser Brodie his entire career, he chose to call himself BRODIE Lee after all, he has that same shaggy intensity, and what better way to emulate the late legend who made a GIANT name for himself in All Japan Pro Wrestling, than by going over and terrifying the Japanese wrestling industry.

Compare this to his WWE contract where the company would actually turn down independent movie offers on his behalf if they didn’t think they were right for him, this is a huge, and deserved amount of freedom for him.

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1. He doesn’t want to be compared to Bray

During the interview, Brodie Lee remembers something that CM Punk once told him from way back when they worked together in 2013, “Things can always be better in WWE”. Lee describes that as coming true for him.

The Wyatt Family could have been better, the bludgeon brothers could have been better. Despite extreme reservations about becoming the Exalted One, the leader of a dark cult and therefore being directly compared to Bray Wyatt, Lee describes this as an opportunity to do what WWE could have done to make the Wyatt Family better.

Despite describing himself as almost having PTSD from working in WWE, and an almost paranoia of bookers changing things on him at the last minute, he remains excited about the opportunity, claiming that a vignette people will see on the next coming episode of Dynamite is a clear statement of how he’s going to put a different spin on a cult leader, and avoid comparisons to the eater of worlds.

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• luke harper
• talk is jericho
• Brodie Lee
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