WWE Shares Unseen Footage Of CM Punk’s 2023 Return (Video)

WWE has released a special look at the night CM Punk shocked the world.

After being unceremoniously fired by AEW in September 2023, it appeared that CM Punk was running out of wrestling options.

Punk’s time in AEW had initially been seen as his end game given he’d just spent seven years out of the ring after his acrimonious split with WWE in 2014. So with another bridge burned, no matter the speculation it appeared unlikely he’d appear at Survivor Series in Chicago.

However, pro wrestling has the ability to surprise, and it’s often said that nothing is off the table if there’s money to be made.

With that in mind, Punk walked out in front of a packed Allstate Arena to a defeating ovation as Survivor Series went off the air. Not since the return of Hulk Hogan in 2002 had a return that seemed so improbable come to pass.

It speaks to the level of shock on the night and Punk’s star power that other than salute the crowd, he did nothing after his music hit. Not that it mattered, he was back.

To celebrate the one-year anniversary of his return, WWE has now shared a special behind-the-scenes look at the night hell froze over.

CM Punk Reunites With Paul Heyman

Fast forward almost a year to the day of that famous comeback, and CM Punk returned to SmackDown on November 22nd alongside Paul Heyman.

With Roman Reigns, Sami Zayn, and The Usos face-to-face with the new Bloodline, Heyman made his first appearance since June, declaring that he didn’t like the math of five vs. four at WarGames, so he decided to help.

This brought out Punk to a thunderous ovation, and he helped clear the ring before sharing a tense staredown with Roman Reigns.