Almost 40 years after its initial debut, Amazon Prime Video are set to bring "American Gladiators" back to people's screens in the near future. It has already been confirmed that former WWE Champion The Miz will act as the host, while a number of the gladiators themselves are current or former wrestlers. Former WWE Superstar Rick Boogs, OVW star J-Rod, and former TNA Tag Team Champion Jessie Godderz (who currently works in OVW along with J-Rod) will all be involved, as will current AEW stars Kamille and Wardlow.
The involvement of Kamille and Wardlow reportedly rubbed one wrestling company the wrong way, and in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer has confirmed that it was WWE who had a problem with TheMiz working with performers contracted to AEW, even if Kamille and Wardlow have not been used in AEW for some time. Meltzer noted that the biggest question surrounding the show now that filming has started, is if The Miz will not only interact with Kamille and Wardlow on the show, but also promote WWE with the AEW stars on the show. However, the opposite could also apply in Meltzer's eyes, as Kamille and Wardlow could be used to promote AEW while The Miz is on-screen, only angering WWE further.
Both the original version of "American Gladiators," as well as the first attempt to reboot the show in 2008, have had some sort of wrestling-related tie-ins. From the original run that began in 1989, the show was famously hosted by Mike Adamle, who would have a short, yet infamously memorable run as part of WWE's broadcast team in 2008. As for the 2008 reboot, that was hosted by WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan, and featured former TNA star Matt Morgan, former Tough Enough competitor Jesse Smith Jr., and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's cousin Tanoai Reed
"American Gladiators" isn't the only situation where WWE have been unhappy at the fact that a star, or stars, from All Elite Wrestling are sharing the spotlight with one of their talents.
On the June 16 episode of "WWE Raw," Netflix ran commercials for the upcoming release of "Happy Gilmore 2" starring Adam Sandler, which will begin streaming exclusively on Netflix on July 25. The problem WWE have is that former AEW World Champion MJF is not only featured in the movie, but has a large role as he will portray one of Gilmore's sons, and has featured in nearly all of the trailers that have been released so far.
The solution? A specialized trailer made for WWE that will air on Netflix that doesn't feature MJF as Meltzer noted Netflix will obviously want to promote the movie given that it's one of their biggest summer releases, but WWE doesn't want to shine any sort of light on MJF or AEW. Sure enough, an MJF-free commercial aired during the June 16 edition of "Raw." Current WWE Women's Intercontinental Champion Becky Lynch and WWE Hall of Famer Nikki Bella also have roles in the movie, albeit smaller than the role played by MJF, but there is every chance WWE will try to get Lynch and Bella in more trailers going forward.
As for AEW, Meltzer claims that Lynch and Bella being in the same movie as MJF isn't something they will care about, but given that the movie is on Netflix, there is a chance they won't outright promote it in the same vein as "The Iron Claw" in 2023 (starring MJF), or "Queen of the Ring" in 2025 (starring Toni Storm) as it's unlikely that Netflix will sponsor the show. However, Meltzer thinks it makes sense for AEW to promote the movie given how much hype is surrounding it heading into the summer.
