Backstage Details On Creative Problems At WWE Raw & WrestleMania Backlash

Chaos reigned in WWE's creative room for Raw and WrestleMania Backlash.

by Andy H Murray
Bayley WWE
WWE.com

Sunday's WrestleMania Backlash pay-per-view and last night's episode of Raw were both subjected to last-minute rewrites and reshuffles.

Per PWInsider's Mike Johnson, WWE didn't make the decision on which match would headline WrestleMania Backlash until around 17:30-18:00 EST on show day, which would be minutes before the Kickoff Show commenced. The company ended up going with Roman Reigns' Universal Title clash with Cesaro over WWE Champion Bobby Lashley vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Braun Strowman.

The same outlet notes that there was a "ton of rewriting" for last night's episode of Raw. The show hadn't been completed by 17:30 EST.

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In yesterday's Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online Daily Update, Dave Meltzer stated that the Raw script had been "torn up" several times throughout the door, with WWE making a bunch of changes.

Such stories are nothing new in WWE, which operates at the whim of an erratic, tempestuous billionaire. Barely a week passes without news of widescale rewrites or last-minute changes.

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Zombies aside, WrestleMania Backlash was a well-received show nonetheless. The follow-up episode of Raw saw McIntyre cost Lashley a non-title singles match with Kofi Kingston, presumably to keep their long-running feud going.

Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.