UPDATED: Alexa Bliss' WWE Return Scrapped Due To Contract Dispute (WWE NEWS)
Contract dispute led to Alexa Bliss' WWE return being scrapped ahead of 13 January Raw.
UPDATED (Jan 24, 2025 at 10:50 AM GMT): PWInsider reports that WWE cancelled Alexa Bliss' scheduled return due to a contract dispute. Bliss reportedly wanted a new contract on improved terms upon returning. WWE wished for her to come back on her existing deal, which had been extended during her ongoing absence (Bliss has not appeared for WWE since January 2023).
The situation has created a stalemate. Both sides are playing hardball. Thus, WWE postponed Alexa's return and the planned angle involving The Wyatt Sicks (see below). The two sides remain at odds following the dispute and there is no word of a resolution.
Bliss removed references to WWE from her social media profiles on 14 January, the day after she was originally set to return.
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WWE has reportedly told creative to indefinitely postpone plans for Alexa Bliss after scrapping the long-term absentee's return on Raw's 13 January episode.
PWInsider states that Alexa's proposed 13 January return had been in the works for several weeks. The angle would have involved the Wyatt Sicks, though it was ultimately scrapped right before the show, with the writers instructed to pause all Bliss-related ideas.
Bliss was reportedly ready to return, with the creative plans themselves not the problem. One source felt that a contractual issue may have contributed, though others weren't sure of this. There is no concrete word on why WWE chose not to execute the return.
The situation shouldn't be considered a sign that Bliss will be in the women's Royal Rumble next weekend either. Per PWInsider, saving Alexa's return for the surprise-strewn 1 February event wasn't a motivating factor and Bliss has not factored into pitches for the women's Rumble.
As for the Wyatt Sicks, any plans involving them are now independent of Bliss. The Uncle Howdy-led group were formally traded to SmackDown during the 13 January Raw.
WrestleVotes reported on 9 January that Bliss' WWE return was imminent. Creative had been working on plans, with merchandise and promotional materials already in the works. If both the PWInsider and WrestleVotes reports are accurate, WWE's pivot may have come between 9 and 13 January.
Bliss has been away from WWE since early 2023, last wrestling for the company at that year's Royal Rumble event, meaning her comeback is now almost two years in the making.