Developmental
By Scott Keith on 18th November 2023
I touched on this a bit in my NWA email but I'm curious how are your thoughts have changed in the past couple years. I remember you saying at one point that you really think they should have taken Evolve and made it into a true developmental brand and put it on the network. So with NXT going to network television and getting a 70% increase in their TV rights, how do you think they should address their developmental brand? This is clearly going to be a different NXT. They are going to want to build it up further to being a major brand. There is word that they are going to start touring the brand and going into smaller profitable arenas outside of the PC. Who knows what the television landscape is going to look like in 2028 when they are shopping around for new deals but they are obviously going to want three major television properties to shop around. I don't think you could do that with trying to hold on to the idea of NXT being developmental…even in a hybrid sort of way.
Do you think they should start a true developmental brand with exclusive talent/championships based out of the PC? But what do you even call it at this point? Evolve has been gone for years, do they try to resurrect it for this purpose? Start something completely new? They already have the Level Up show on Peacock in place for true developmental talent…do they just rename it to Evolve? I feel like in order to take NXT to the next level and move away from the minor league label they can't also have a show with completely unknown people. That would be like a show being called SmackDown Level Up with people you've never heard of in your life.
They have enough shows on TV now, I really don't need anymore. Then you're getting into levels of developmental and keeping track of way too much stuff. Honestly I kind of wish they had left NXT alone as the wacky developmental brand where people could learn, instead of suddenly monetizing it and sending Becky Lynch down to draw ratings.