Add as a preferred source on Google Aleister Black may be heading back to AEW just days after WWE released him alongside Zelina Vega. According to SEScoops, Black is in active negotiations with Tony Khan’s company, though no deal has been signed yet.
The report is notable because it cuts against the tone of recent updates. Fightful reported that sources within AEW weren’t expecting a Black return anytime soon, even as Sean Ross Sapp indicated the bridge between the two sides hadn’t been fully burned.
Dave Meltzer added on Wrestling Observer Radio that some people in AEW reacted quite negatively to the idea of Black coming back. Jim Ross took a more open stance on Grilling JR, saying he doesn’t believe Black has destroyed his relationship with Tony Khan while warning that his chances are slipping.
Recently released WWE Superstar Aleister Black, known outside the ring Tom Budgen, is in active negotiations with All Elite Wrestling.
— J O H N (@RomanEra0) May 6, 2026
(Sescoops) pic.twitter.com/JkKkvk4yYE
Black was one of the most surprising names in WWE’s latest round of cuts, which also claimed Kairi Sane, Santos Escobar, Motor City Machine Guns, and the entire Wyatt Sicks. His exit came nearly a year after he returned to the company on the SmackDown following WrestleMania 41.
During his AEW run as Malakai Black, he led the House of Black and captured the AEW World Trios Championship with Brody King and Buddy Matthews. The reign kicked off at Revolution 2023 and lasted 175 days before falling to The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn at All In: London.
Whether Tony Khan actually signs off on the return remains to be seen. If it happens, Black would become another direct swap between WWE and AEW since 2021.