Add as a preferred source on Google Paramount Skydance’s purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery has not been completed yet, but it is already creating noise backstage in WWE.
According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, one person in WWE said the idea that AEW will not remain with Paramount/Skydance once its current contract ends has already been circulating among “some, if not many” inside the company.
Another source cited in the same report said people at the highest levels are talking as if AEW will not land another major deal. Meltzer, however, noted that similar stories surfaced during the last round of negotiations, when people claimed Tony Khan’s company would either stay flat or even take less money before ultimately landing a 2.3-times increase.
What makes the situation more delicate is the current corporate landscape. Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders have approved the sale to Paramount Skydance, in a deal that still needs regulatory approval and could close in the third quarter of 2026. WBD also owns a minority stake in AEW.
One person in WWE noted that word has spread in the company among some if not many that AEW won’t be on Paramount/Skydance (when their current deal expires) and question if they can get a viable deal elsewhere.
— WrestlePurists (@WrestlePurists) May 15, 2026
“One person there noted that people at the highest levels are… pic.twitter.com/lb44I1LSif
AEW renewed its deal with WBD in 2024. Since January 2025, Dynamite and Collision have aired on TBS, TNT and Max under a deal Sports Business Journal estimated at $170 million per year for three years, with an option for a fourth.
Paramount has also already signed a billion-dollar deal with TKO to carry UFC in the United States starting in 2026, which naturally increases internal comparisons with WWE.
For now, Paramount Skydance has made no public decision regarding AEW. In other words, any firm conclusion still appears premature.