Freddie Prinze Jr. Claims ESPN Unhappy With WWE Deal, Network Responds

Former WWE writer Freddie Prinze Jr. has claimed ESPN is not happy with WWE, but how close to the truth is that?

WWE recently inked a lucrative new deal with ESPN that will see the company’s premium live events air on ESPN’s streaming service in the United States. That began with September’s Wrestlepalooza, which saw John Cena decimated by Brock Lesnar.

The partnership got off to a rocky start, however, when Stephanie McMahon actively encouraged listeners to sign up for a VPN service that would allow them to watch WWE content on Netflix, as Netflix is already an international streaming partner for WWE PLEs.

Further unrest was reported when ESPN’s WWE correspondent gave Wrestlepalooza a scathing review, sharing views that were widely held by fans after the show. Some in WWE were said to be dismayed that their new partner had been so critical of the product.

So it might not be a surprise that some are suggesting that not everything is rosy between the two sides.

Problems Between ESPN & WWE?

Speaking on his Wrestling With Freddie podcast, Hollywood star Freddie Prinze Jr. claimed that ESPN is not happy with WWE:

ESPN, by the way, so unhappy with the deal. I was talking to a friend of mine who works for Disney, and he was just like, ‘Yo, they better make their money back on this deal.’ He just said, ‘They’re hot.’

Fightful Select has reported that, after reaching out to both WWE and ESPN sources, Prinze Jr.’s claims might have been overblown. ESPN claimed they hadn’t heard any negative chatter and have enjoyed working with WWE.

A WWE higher up is quoted as saying that “No one in WWE upper management is aware of Freddie Prinze’s role in wrestling or otherwise.”