Vince McMahon is being investigated by WWE‘s board for alleged misconduct with a former employee, and Maria Kanellis had strong words for the former CEO on Twitter. The co-owner of Women’s Wrestling Army has never been shy when it comes to her feelings about her former employer, and it didn’t take long for her to chime in on the allegations that McMahon and head of talent relations, John Laurinaitis are currently facing.
Kanellis’ initial run with WWE began back in 2004 when she placed fifth in the company’s Diva Search. She would go on to be hired as a backstage interviewer before beginning her in-ring career a year later in 2005. She’s also been involved with a handful of other wrestling organizations, including ROH and IMPACT Wrestling. The aim of her Women’s Wrestling Army is to produce more diverse wrestling content than what is typically available for fans.
In response to Alex Sherman’s report that McMahon would be appearing on the June 17 edition of Friday Night SmackDown, Kanellis tweeted the following via her @MariaLKanellis handle: “Isn’t this disrespectful to the women hurt in this situation? It’s not a joke. WWE’s company culture of fear and abuse of power is not a joke.“
She’s not alone in her misgivings. Another report indicated that McMahon had heat backstage for the SmackDown appearance idea. WWE.com is still actively advertising that he’ll be on the show, though, and apparently, the script that had been written and finished last night was torn up. It’s believed that McMahon will be appearing in character, and some backstage are concerned that he’ll turn these allegations into a Vince vs The World angle. Which, in an essence, is what Kanellis seems to be taking aim at here. That a professional wrestling angle based on allegations surrounding real human beings is disrespectful to the women involved.
Audiences won’t know for certain what McMahon’s appearance is about until he speaks, but the news of him appearing on SmackDown has been widely panned and criticized. He’s never been one to shrink away from the spotlight during controversial times, however, and this certainly wouldn’t be the first time real-world issues were leveraged for WWE television. It remains to be seen whether or not these proceedings will impact the rest of SmackDown, which also features Roman Reigns’ first title defense wince WrestleMania 38 against Riddle and a handful of other advertised segments. This is a fluid situation, and it seems likely that more will be revealed about these allegations and the board’s investigation process in the coming days and weeks.
