As AEW has continued to expand and build their infrastructure over the course of their six year existence, plenty of familiar faces have begun to pop up in prominent backstage roles. It can now be fully confirmed another familiar face has joined the fray. PWInsider Elite reports that former WWE and TNA name Josh Matthews has been spotted working in AEW's production trucks, facilitating information between AEW's production team, and producers/agents involved in match planning. This confirms a previous report from Dave Meltzer that Matthews had joined AEW earlier this month.
The role is an interesting one for Matthews, who many remember for his role onscreen as opposed to off. First coming to people's attention as the runner up from the original WWE Tough Enough, Matthews joined WWE in 2002 as a backstage interviewer and host. He eventually became a full-time play-by-play announcer in 2009 on the ECW brand, and later served as an announcer on "Raw," "SmackDown," and the original incarnation of "NXT." His run came to an end when he was released in June 2014 after his role had been diminished in the preceding years.
Later that year, Matthews signed with TNA, and in December was announced as the promotion's new head announcer, replacing long-time play-by-play man Mike Tenay. He would serve in the role until January 2021, transitioning into a behind-the-scenes role as TNA's Senior Director of Digital media. His decade-long run with the promotion ended this past February, when he and several other long-time employees were let go as part of a backstage shakeup, which many credited to new TNA Executive Producer George Veras looking to bring in his own team. Matthews joining AEW reunites him with his wife, Madison Rayne, who works with AEW as a producer and occasional wrestler.
