WWE ready to begin Netflix era with ‘Monday Night Raw’ moving to the streaming platform

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nick Khan’s predictions came true Monday night.

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The World Wrestling Entertainment CEO said while taking calls in the past that he saw a day when Netflix would continue to evolve and get into streaming programming, much to the consternation of Netflix officials.

However, Khan saw the appointments Netflix was making alongside the streaming service’s offerings that could appeal to the whole family.

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Now, one of those shows is WWE.

The 1,650th episode of “Monday Night Raw” from the Intuit Dome outside Los Angeles officially begins WWE’s 10-year partnership with Netflix. The agreement, reached last January, is worth more than $5 billion with the option to extend Netflix for an additional 10 years or cancel the subscription after five years.

“We’re trying to bring WWE to all 50 states and countries around the world. We think Netflix is ​​doing the same thing,” said Khan, who is WWE president.

Netflix — which has 282.3 million subscribers in more than 190 countries — has become the exclusive home of “Raw” in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Latin America, with additional countries added over time. But the biggest element of Netflix is ​​that the streaming platform will carry all of the company’s shows overseas — including “Smackdown” and “NXT” — as well as premium live events like WrestleMania, SummerSlam and Royal Rumble.

In the US, “Smackdown” moved from Fox to USA Network from Fox and “NXT” moved from the US to the CW three months ago. Peacock has a contract to carry WWE’s premium live events through March 2026.

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“Raw” began airing on January 11, 1993, and is the longest-running weekly series on television. Most of that time was on USA Network with a show on Spike TV, now known as Paramount Network.

“It has great stories and characters along with unforgettable and amazing stories. The idea of ​​combining this kind of intense fanbase with these characters and our global reach feels like a great opportunity,” said Bela Bajaria, chief content officer at Netflix. “What else we love” It’s multi-generational fan base. At the end of the day, we have great things that our members love and this absolutely achieves all the things we want. And doing this 52 weeks a year is very exciting.

WWE’s global reach has expanded over the past year, with nearly half of its premium live events taking place overseas. The company will also embark on an expanded European tour in March to build momentum for WrestleMania 41, which will take place in Las Vegas on April 19-20.

Khan said WWE first approached Netflix about the rights in 2018, but Netflix wasn’t ready to start streaming live events. The streaming service has ramped up its efforts over the past year, not only with sporting events, but with Chris Rock’s comedy special and Tom Brady’s roast.

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Brandon Rigg, Netflix’s vice president of reality series and sports, said the social media buzz around “Raw” each week as well as the stable audience WWE provides made it a good fit this time around when the company approached Netflix last year.

In turn, Rigg believes Netflix can help expand WWE’s audience as it did with Formula 1 and the “Drive to Survive” series.

“It really fit into the whole picture because we would be having these big events like the Tyson-Ball fight and the NFL at Christmas,” he said. “But throughout the year, if we can get a consistent rhythm of those amazing live moments and live events and spectacle, that’s what we’ll get with WWE.”

According to Nielsen, “Raw’s” finale on USA Network averaged 1.6 million viewers despite being compared to the “Monday Night Football” game between the Detroit Lions and San Francisco 49ers.

Khan and WWE chief content officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque also stressed that the three-hour weekly show would not hurt its ratings due to its presence on the streaming platform. “Raw” was known for sticking to serious content during the late 1990s in what WWE called the “Attitude Era,” but that has changed over the years.

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“It’s not pushing anyone away from what they want. It’s a safe place for families and everyone to be able to watch it. That’s not going to change, but you don’t have to change that to expand and improve what you do,” Levesque said.

WWE’s storytelling and character development continue to excel even during external challenges. Former Chairman Vince McMahon resigned last January following a lawsuit alleging sexual misconduct. In 2023, WWE was purchased by Endeavor and merged with the Ultimate Fighting Championship to create TKO Group Holdings.

According to WWE, there were 44 TV sales and 66 total, including house shows and premium live events, in 2024.

WWE Champion Cody Rhodes credited Khan and Levesque with keeping the company on track, along with cutting back on some non-televised live events to ensure top talent was not burned out during the year.

Levesque said Monday’s show will be at the level of a premium live event. John Cena, who will retire from WWE at the end of the year, begins his farewell tour with three main matches up for grabs. It wouldn’t come as a shock either if Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson makes an appearance.

Roman Reigns, who will be participating in a main event match, said he always tries to give his best, but he also knows how important Monday night is to the company.

“There’s no hiding that this is Netflix and it’s huge and it’s going to be on a global platform with a lot of people watching. I’m not sure exactly what that audience is going to look like. It’s going to be crazy, I know that.”

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AP Sports Writer Dan Gelston in Philadelphia contributed to this story.

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AP Sports: https://apnews.com/sports

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