The Undertaker Says WWE Risks Losing Focus If Fans Dictate Storylines

The Undertaker is drawing a clear line when it comes to WWE creative—and he’s not on board with fans calling all the shots.

Speaking on Nightcap, Undertaker got into how storylines actually work behind the scenes, and why letting audience reactions completely dictate direction can backfire. According to him, there’s a balance to strike—and once that balance is lost, even strong ideas can fall apart fast.

When asked how long a storyline should last, Undertaker first set the tone by explaining that there’s no guaranteed structure or timeline that always works. He then expanded on how creative ideas often start strong on paper, especially when building toward major matches like WrestleMania—but that doesn’t mean they’ll connect once they’re presented to the audience.

“It’s up to them. You can have this brilliant idea in your mind—like, ‘Oh man, I want to see wrestler A fight wrestler B’—and you think it’s going to be the greatest thing ever. And then you start looking at it like, ‘Man, I’d love to get this match all the way to WrestleMania.’”

Continuing that thought, Undertaker pointed out that once those ideas actually go live, the reaction can completely change the trajectory. To drive the point home, he compared wrestling storytelling to a play call in sports—something that can work perfectly in theory but fail in execution if the audience doesn’t respond.

“But then you put it out there, and sometimes it ain’t as good as you thought. It’s just like a play call—you think it’s going to work. At practice, it works, right? But if your audience doesn’t resonate with it or doesn’t get with it, then it’s… I call it pissing up a rope—you ain’t going to get nothing but your hands wet.”

The Undertaker was then asked whether WWE should adjust creative direction based on audience reactions. He made it clear there’s a balance that has to be maintained. He followed that up by explaining that fans don’t always have the full context of long-term storytelling plans—and that impatience can disrupt how those stories are meant to unfold.

“Well, there’s a lot that goes into that. Obviously, they’re not in the know of the big picture. And sometimes people get impatient—they don’t want to wait. That’s part of storytelling.”

Building on that, Undertaker stressed the importance of pacing and keeping audiences invested over time, rather than rushing moments just to satisfy immediate reactions. He also reflected on how storytelling used to rely heavily on anticipation, especially during the Monday Night Wars, when audiences didn’t have instant access to results.

“You’ve got to have those beats in the story that keep them captivated—like, ‘Okay, I want to see what happens next.’ Back in the day, during the Monday Night Wars, we’d go off with a cliffhanger and people had to wait. You couldn’t just go to YouTube—you had to wait until the next Monday night to see what was going to happen.”

Finally, Undertaker wrapped it up by making his stance clear—fan feedback matters, but it shouldn’t take over the entire creative process. And if that balance isn’t maintained, the entire vision can fall apart.

“So yeah, to answer your question—you have to have good creative, and it has to resonate with your audience to a certain extent. You have to listen—but you can’t let it dictate everything. If it solely dictates, then you lose focus of what you’re trying to do.”

Bottom line — even a legend like The Undertaker is admitting there’s no magic formula behind WWE storytelling. If it clicks, it clicks. If it doesn’t, no amount of planning can save it—and trying to chase every fan reaction might actually make things worse.

Do you think WWE should adjust storylines more based on fan reactions, or stick to long-term plans no matter what? Drop your thoughts below.