10 Big Changes Coming To WWE On Netflix
Raw heads into uncharted territory, full of opportunities to do things differently.
“Netflix” might be a dirty word around WWE headquarters these days, with the less-than-flattering “Mr. McMahon” documentary making waves, but in less than three months, Netflix will roll out the welcome mat and bring Monday Night Raw aboard as part of its 10-year, $5 billion deal.
The move to Netflix is an unprecedented one for WWE and its long-running flagship show. After 32 years on cable television, Raw is heading to the uncharted waters of a streaming service for the next decade. What that means for Raw has been the subject of much discussion during the past several months, and the open speculation will continue until at least January 6, 2025, when the voyage begins.
As a cable TV product, WWE programming has had to fit into a very specific set of parameters and rules: a certain number of commercials breaking up the action, a PG rating (and the restrictions that come with it), station standards and practices, and other guidelines. Fans have grown accustomed to “Raw rolling on” during a commercial break, or “Holy s***!” chants being bleeped out during the live broadcast. Match replays involving blood have been shown in black and white to mute the raw impact and visibility of the claret onscreen.
Will moving to Netflix free Raw of all of these rules? Or will it simply be a different set of guidelines to follow? Here are some of the changes on the horizon.
Let’s get to it…
10. Pre-Emption A Thing Of The Past
Longtime Raw viewers will remember their favorite Monday night wrestling program being bantered off every February due to the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show taking up residence on the USA Network. More recently, Raw found itself moved to Syfy this summer due to the Summer Olympics.
Viewership inevitably would decline as some fans struggled to adeptly navigate their way around a TV Guide and find the program on its temporary home, despite numerous reminders on the prior week’s Raw. SmackDown fell victim to this phenomenon during its run on FOX, pre-empted for Major League Baseball playoffs and other sports and bumped to FS1.
Netflix will have no such pre-emption problems, whether it’s due to a sporting event, dog show, or even a national emergency that pre-empts programs for a simulcast. Fans won’t have to worry about tracking down Raw on a different channel – they’ll just open the Netflix app, click and enjoy.