AEW Forced To Move All Out As WWE Stacks Wrestlepalooza

AEW has been forced into making a major change for All Out as WWE relentlessly stacks Wrestlepalooza with two huge returns.

WWE has not been shy in counter-programming AEW since Tony Khan’s company came into existence in 2019. At All In Texas, WWE cornered the show with three of their own on the same weekend, but AEW came out of that experience relatively unscathed.

Now with All Out on the horizon, WWE attempted to put its main roster PLE Wrestlepalooza head-to-head with the AEW pay-per-view. Brock Lesnar is likely to headline that event with John Cena following Lesnar’s shock return to WWE at SummerSlam. The fact that Wrestlepalooza will be WWE’s first show as part of its new partnership with ESPN, the card is sure to be stacked.

WWE has already spoiled AJ Lee’s expected return to WWE after ten years away and she’s expected to be on the Wrestlepalooza card, teaming with her husband CM Punk to face Becky Lynch and Seth Rollins.

With all of this staring Tony Khan in the face, he’s now made a change.

AEW Move All Out To Afternoon Slot

Fightful Select has reported that AEW has confirmed that All Out will now air at 3 PM ET, moved five hours up from its original start time of 8 PM ET. Sources in the company are said to have pointed to the success of Forbidden Door, which aired in the afternoon in the US, as contributing to the decision.

A press release issued also confirmed that, for the first time, AEW pay-per-views will now be available on HBO MAX:

Warner Bros. Discovery, HBO Max and All Elite Wrestling today announced a groundbreaking expansion of their nearly six-year relationship, with the launch of AEW pay-per-view events on HBO Max, starting with AEW All Out on Saturday, September 20 at 3 p.m. ET from Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada.

HBO Max will stream live AEW pay-per-view events without ads, with all marketing and promotions of AEW PPV events primarily centered on HBO Max. Preorders for AEW All Out on HBO Max will launch this Friday, September 5, allowing U.S. HBO Max subscribers with supported devices to purchase the event for the exclusive price of $39.99.

Fans streaming AEW All Out on HBO Max can enjoy this event in HDR10 and Dolby Atmos, delivering stunning picture quality and immersive, arena-like sound that puts fans at the center of the action. Purchase and access to PPV Content may vary by subscription provider.

HBO Max users with a base subscription and a supported device can log on to purchase the event, which will be highlighted throughout the app or found in search. Once a purchase is complete, subscribers can find the event under “My Purchases” via the “My Stuff” page on the HBO Max menu. After the event, replays will be exclusively available for six months for purchasers. For more information on the HBO Max PPV experience, click here.

Leading into AEW All Out that Saturday, September 20, TNT and HBO Max will air AEW Saturday Tailgate Brawl: All Out at 2 p.m. ET, a one-hour live show that will get fans’ adrenaline pumping for the afternoon’s main attraction.

Also, earlier in the week on Wednesday, September 17, TBS and HBO Max will be live from London, Ontario for a special three-hour show — September to Remember — starting at 8 p.m. ET, featuring AEW’s biggest names in non-stop high-flying action as they set the stage for the signature pay-per-view event that weekend.

The addition of AEW pay-per-view events on HBO Max continues an incredible year for AEW programming across Warner Bros. Discovery networks and platforms, delivering the widest offering for AEW fans ever.

HBO Max subscribers in the U.S. have access to a growing library of hundreds of hours of AEW content, including all new AEW weekly telecasts — AEW Dynamite on TBS and AEW Collision on TNT — as a live simulcast as well as on demand replays, all AEW pay-per-view special events through the end of 2024, all episodes of AEW Dynamite from its first two years, as well as all recent episodes of AEW Dynamite and AEW Collision.

AEW programming has reached more than 11 million fans so far this year across TBS and TNT, with AEW Dynamite on TBS ranking as Wednesday’s #1 cable entertainment program among P18-49. AEW Collision also ranks among the top 5 programs in its Saturday time slot among P18-49 and M18-49. TNT’s April 26 episode of AEW Collision delivered the show’s third largest total viewers ever, and TBS’ AEW Grand Slam Mexico on June 18 had the most watched AEW Dynamite episode among P25-54 in nearly a year (July 2024).