Tony Khan sets the record straight.
Mercedes Moné has been on an impressive run in AEW so far. She currently holds six different championships, including the TBS Championship which she’s held for more than 400 days. Moné is set to challenge Toni Storm for the AEW Women’s Championship at All In. However, she still faces criticism from fans who claim she has “creative control” over her bookings.
Khan was asked about it during the AEW All In media call on Tuesday afternoon by Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com. Khan shut the rumor down, explaining that no one, including Mercedes, has final creative control — besides him.
“That’s definitely not true at all, so I would love to talk about that. First of all, the person you are talking about, Mercedes Moné, is an incredible, incredible talent. I have wanted Mercedes Moné in AEW. I wanted her as a star on the show and really enjoy working with her backstage and as a great talent. She’s done great things with the media, and she’s just a great person. I think Mercedes is a great addition to AEW. I also think that is ridiculous, the idea that people would think because she is a strong wrestler on the show that she must be the one dictating that. That is the complete opposite of what happens here,” Tony Khan explained.
Tony Khan clarifies that he is the only one with creative control
“I’m the only person with creative control over the show,” he added. “I’ve had the final say since day one of AEW. I’ve had the final creative control since the beginning of the company.”
Khan went on to explain how he listens to talent’s ideas. However, he won’t do them if he doesn’t feel 100% about it. Khan went on to praise Jen Pepperman for her work with Mercedes and RJ City for writing for Toni Storm. He also reiterated that the idea of a talent like Moné having creative control because she’s on the show so much is unfounded.
“Mercedes is a great, great wrestler. She’s a focus on the show. And she’s the TBS Champion because she’s hugely followed and a hugely talented star who brings so much to the table,” Khan said. “I’ve seen a lot of people infer that she must have some kind of a creative card because she is such a feature on the show. But that is ridiculous to me because when you have somebody of that stature, you’d want to feature them, you’d want to push them strongly.
Khan said that he finds Moné to be a great person to work with. She is also a great example of someone who works really hard and trusts AEW’s direction.
