Discovery Wanted AEW Match To Tie In With Shark Week

AEW has had its share of cross-promotional tie-ins since its inception in 2019. The company once held a Godzilla vs Kong match to promote the release of that film by Turner’s parent company, Time Warner. Since then, Discovery and Warner Brothers have merged, and that means AEW will be doing some things for the hugely popular Shark Week.

A barbed wire deathmatch isn’t the first idea that comes to mind for most people. However, on July 20, Chris Jericho and Eddie Kingston will face off in just that type of match. The Jericho Appreciation Society will be suspended above the ring in a shark cage, completing the tie-in.

On the latest Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer discussed the crossover. Discovery wanted to do some kind of Shark Week gimmick match. Since actual sharks are generally out of the question in professional wrestling, the shark cage is what they came up with.

“The shark thing, I guess, is the gimmick having to do with Shark Week. You know, Discovery asked them to do a tie-in and so they came up with a match to do a tie-in in. So, that’s a week from Wednesday.”

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AEW is expected to have other tie-ins with Discovery for Shark Week. It was reported that several AEW stars have already filmed content. The barbed wire deathmatch will be just one part of that.

It will be interesting to see just how much Tony Khan allows in a match being used to promote TBS & TNT’s new sister network. It is rare enough for a barbed wire match to make it to basic cable. The Shark Week tie-in will make things a little more interesting to watch.

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Transcription by Ringside News