Reason For Samoa Joe AEW In-Ring Hiatus Potentially Revealed: Twisted Metal Season Three To Begin Filming In June 2026

Published: 17 minutes ago by Dave Adamson | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago by Dave Adamson

Dave has been a website writer for WrestleTalk since October 2022, having previously written for Den of Geek, among a number of wrestling, movie and television-related sites. Dave has been around the independent wrestling scene for more than a decade, including behind-the-scenes.

Reason For Samoa Joe AEW In-Ring Hiatus Potentially Revealed: Twisted Metal Season Three To Begin Filming In June 2026

Samoa Joe is taking a leave of absence from AEW, apparently leaving HOOK in charge of The Opps, and the reason has seemingly been revealed.

With AEW Collision seeing Samoa Joe state that he will be stepping away for a few months, the former AEW World Champion teased that “opportunity knocks and Hollywood is ringing”.

An update has now emerged, with the specific project Samoa Joe will be working on amid his AEW absence potentially being revealed.

According to Film In Toronto, season 3 of Twisted Metal is set to film in the area between June 15 and August 26.

While it hasn’t been confirmed, all signs are pointing to this being the project that Joe will be stepping away from the ring for a few months for, meaning that Samoa Joe could potential be absent until days before AEW All In.

Premiering in July 2023 on Peacock, Twisted Metal is a series based on the popular video game franchise, with the AEW star physically performing as Sweet Tooth, a character voiced by Will Arnett.

As the physical embodiment of Sweet Tooth, Samoa Joe revealed he suffered a fractured ankle during the filming of the second season in 2024.

Twisted Metal was renewed for a third season in November of last year, although details on what fans can expect are still thin on the ground.

Set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, Twisted Metal follows the story of John Doe (Anthony Mackie) as an amnesiac delivery driver who crosses the United States with a package to deliver.

Season 2 premiered on July 31 of last year, with the first three episodes dropping on Peacock, running through to its finale on August 28.

“HOOK Just Finished His Latest Movie”

Teeing up his absence, Samoa Joe commented that “HOOK just finished his latest movie”, which may come as a surprise to some fans.

The former FTW Champion stepped into the acting space last year for the short movie ‘Money Talks’ written by David Mazouz (Bruce Wayne in the Gotham TV series) and Tony Mucci, who would direct the project.

Billed under his real name of Tyler Senerchia, the AEW star played a character simply referred to as “Mystery Man”.

A quick look at the star’s IMDB profile sheds no light on what his most recent project is, although it’s clear that HOOK has interests in the movie world.

Discussing ‘Money Talks’, Hook previously commented that he would “love to be a leading man“, going on to reveal that his, at the time, next project will see him with such an opportunity. With these comments being made at the start of this year, it’s entirely possible that the “latest movie” Samoa Joe referenced is this project.

Hook and Samoa Joe aren’t the only AEW stars with acting on their resume, with MJF recently discussing a desire to be the fourth face of a proverbial Mount Rushmore of wrestlers-turned-actors, following in the footsteps of The Rock, John Cena and Bastista.