Report: WWE Preparing To Transition Into More Of A Mainstream Entertainment Company
Nick Khan has big plans
Apr 26, 2021
WWE has received a shake-up behind the scenes over the past week.
The hierarchy of the talent relations department has changed greatly with higher-ups like Mark Carrano and Nicole Zeoli departing the company. Referee Rudy Charles was also removed from his talent relations role and John Cone was briefly fired as a senior manager but he was quickly reinstated.
The company has been going through similar changes in the communications department. Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Brian Flinn has left the company after over nine years with WWE. Vice President, Communications Mead Rust is also gone, as is Joe Villa.
The departing individuals were ultimately replaced by people close to WWE President Nick Khan and the company hired Chris Legentil as the new Senior Vice President & Head of Global Communication, Alex Varga as Vice President of Revenue Strategy and Development, and Scott Zanghellini as the new Head of Revenue Strategy and Development.
According to Mike Johnson of PWInsider, Nick Khan has been given "great power and leeway" by Vince McMahon to transition WWE into more of a mainstream entertainment company and the recent hires from Creative Arts Agency are there to carry out Khan's vision and help the company expand into the entertainment world.
Khan wants to position WWE as something similar to Marvel or DC and lean heavily on the company's intellectual property. His new hires in the communications department are there to sell WWE to Hollywood and elsewhere.
One of the ways in which Khan is aiming to present WWE as more mainstream is by adding people with a background in sports to WWE's broadcast teams. Adnan Virk was recently brought in as the play-by-play commentator for Monday Night Raw and Megan Moran was appointed on Friday as the new behind-the-scenes correspondent on SmackDown.
