Vince McMahon demanded Gabbi Tuft, the former Tyler Reks, debut at a Bragging Rights PPV after the creative team had absolutely ‘no vision’ or plans for Reks’ character. Triple H’s text messages to Gabbi Tuft were just revealed.
Tuft told Wrestling Inc, “I will say I am 90% sure that there was no vision for me ever,” Tuft said. “Because, and I have some inside information because I know some of the writers, they were buddies of ours. Apparently in the production meeting before my big debut as the mean Tyler Reks with the beard and the dreadlocks, they had pulled me off TV as a babyface because it just wasn’t working. [I spent] six months plus trying to come up with this heel character, it was right before Bragging Rights.
It was literally Friday night when I worked Kaval (Low-Ki). It was his spot for Bragging Rights. That production meeting Vince goes, ‘What are you guys doing with Tyler Reks?’ And I was told the entire production meeting room was just kind of, they just looked at each other and they go, ‘Nothing?’ ‘What are your plans for him?’ ‘We don’t have any.’ He goes, ‘He’s debuting tonight, he’s going to Bragging Rights.’ And that was it, that was all I knew.”
Brian Gerwitz revealed that Vince McMahon had a vision for Raw becoming like Saturday Night Live when the guest host era started in 2009.
Gerwitz said on The Masked Man Show, “Vince always shoots for the stars. You got to give him credit. When The Network came out, I think the phrase was ‘like Netflix, only better.’ Whoa! That is quite a bold claim. I think similarly when we were doing the guest host era, he said something backstage like, ‘This will be like Saturday Night Live, only better.’
And all of us are like, ‘No, this isn’t going to be,’ I mean, maybe the [Joe] Piscopo era before Eddie Murphy better? But I don’t think this is going to be better in any sense of the word.” Wrestling Inc transcribed Gerwitz’s comments.
