Matt Hardy Discusses the Future of his Character, Hoping to Work Less Dates, More
Since his contract with WWE officially expired on March 1st, wrestling fans have been wondering what is next for the 45yr old Matt Hardy. Hardy recently sat down with Dave LeGreca and Tommy Dreamer of Busted Open to discuss what he sees for the future of the Matt Hardy character.
“You never stay the same in this industry, you’re constantly changing. After today, there will be two more episodes of #FreeTheDELETE. What happens when I get to the next stage – when I become the second coming of Matt Hardy – that character is still going to evolve and change. It’s not going to be like the original Matt Hardy. There’s going to be many more layers. Actually, I’m working on creating the most layered character in wrestling history. There’s a constant change every time. That’s what you have to do to stay fresh and to keep people interested.”
Hardy did not specify which wrestling federation he will sign with, but did indicate that he wants to work less dates and have more creative freedom.
“I am looking to have a much bigger say in my creative process. I want to put my ideas out there and bounce them off people. I want to collaborate and have them help me make them better. I think, I want to be utilized in a way that at 45-year-old should be utilized, where you’re not wrestling every single night. Your character takes priority over your athletic performance… If I can find that atmosphere, I’d call that my arcadia, and that is what I’m shooting for right now.”
It makes sense for Matt to want to work less dates since he and his wife Reby have three young sons under five years old.
With the formation of AEW and huge television contracts for WWE, Hardy believes that this is truly the golden era of wrestling.
“It’s such a golden era in the wrestling industry. I know, people don’t really recognize and realize the current situation in front of them of how historic it is. It’s a historic time. With AEW coming along, with WWE getting a huge TV deal, with the other promotions having money to get guys to hone their crafts and get better and still make a living doing this, we really are living in a golden era of wrestling in so many ways.”
No matter what brand Hardy ends up working for, he believes it is always important to promote yourself.
“It’s very important that you promote your own brand. If you work for a promoter, hopefully he’s going to promote you like crazy. He’s going to build you. He’s going to make you a star. But, at the end of the day, it’s your responsibility to make yourself a star, and it’s your responsibility to make people talk about you.”
Hardy promotes his brand with his “Free the Delete” YouTube show which most recently featured an appearance by AEW Executive Vice Presidents The Young Bucks. This, of course, helped further the rumors that Matt will be signing with AEW soon.
Thank you to WrestlingInc for transcribing the quotes.
Matt’s Musings: Whoever is lucky enough to sign Matt Hardy will be getting an incredible and possibly game-changing talent.