The reimagining of NXT received a great deal of attention when it left the black and gold era and leaped into the era of NXT 2.0. The brighter colors, shifts in presentation and approach, and greater focus on bigger characters were divisive to say the least, and there have been a bevy of small changes and tweaks made to the show since the initial change. It was previously reported that Vince McMahon and Bruce Pritchard were taking a greater role in NXT’s presentation, though Shawn Michaels would still be leading the show overall. In a new interview with Graham Matthews of Bleacher Report, Michaels said that was actually not the case, and that McMahon and Pritchard didn’t have the time to work on NXT TV.
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“When Hunter first left, it became all me, and certainly from a television standpoint,” Michaels said. “Matt Bloom is the head coach and takes care of everything from the PC training standpoint, but when it came to NXT 2.0 television, that’s something myself and my team took over creatively. I know a lot of people thought Vince and Bruce were doing that. I can promise you, they did not have the time to do NXT television. If it’s good or if it’s bad, that’s on me.”
Michaels has truly enjoyed working with all of the new talents in NXT and has utilized the ever-shifting landscape of WWE to teach NXT’s up-and-coming stars about how to adapt and evolve as the need arises, as the show will always go on.
“It’s been a huge joy to run that show and work with these talents. Again, everyone was put in a real tough position, we all were, but that’s where you learn to do things in WWE,” Michaels said. “That, to me, is a form of talent development, which is understanding that things can always change … around here and you have to adjust to that. The show always goes on. It was trial by fire for a lot of us, but it’s been an absolutely fantastic experience.”
Over the past few weeks, Triple H has taken over creative for WWE’s main roster, kicking off the new era at SummerSlam, where Triple H fittingly brought back a former NXT favorite in Dakota Kai. Since then he’s also brought back fellow NXT stars Karrion Kross, Scarlett, and Dexter Lumis, and some are hoping there are more surprises for longtime NXT fans to come.
Are you excited for the future of NXT? Let us know in the comments or as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Twitter @MattAguilarCB!
H/T Fightful
