Add as a preferred source on Google WWE is putting more weight on charisma and mic work during its international tryouts.
Jakk Sellstrom, known to NXT UK fans as Jack Starz, says promos now face much tougher scrutiny. When he first entered the process in 2015, candidates got one shot. It was a short, static promo in front of a camera or a panel of coaches.
The format is far deeper now. Sellstrom explained talents might cut a solo promo to camera, work a face-off with an opponent, handle an interview-style segment, or even cut a group promo.
“Over recent years, I think WWE has had promos under the microscope a lot more. It’s a bigger focal point. When I first started doing these in 2015, we had one shot, you got to do one promo. A static promo in front of a camera or a panel of coaches. You’d have 30 seconds to a minute to deliver it. It’d be either a promo of your choice or maybe they’d give you a subject.”
“Now, it’s a little bit different, a little bit more in-depth. You’d maybe do a static promo to a camera or a panel of coaches. You’d also do a face-off promo with an opponent or an interview style promo, as well as potentially even a group promo. So there’s a lot more variety now.”
His comments follow WWE’s latest UK tryout wave at the WWE UK Performance Center in Enfield, London. The facility opened in January 2019 and served as the home base for NXT UK until the brand closed in September 2022.
Fightful reports the most recent tryout featured talent from across Europe, including Madison Marley, Maddy Morgan, Angel Hayze, Orsi, Safire Reed and JGU.