Women of Wrestling

History

During its initial run, only 24 television episodes and a pay-per-view event were produced. In 2002, McLane sought a partnership with Kiss frontman Gene Simmons to revive the promotion. Reruns began airing on the ABC affiliate KTNV in Las Vegas in July 2011. On May 29, 2012, McLane and Buss announced their intention to revive WOW and produce new episodes; later that year, reruns started airing on The CW Las Vegas station KVCW on December 9.

In December 2014, WOW announced it would produce content for digital media in 2015, marketing its roster as "WOW Superheroes" with characters portrayed as empowered women from various backgrounds and professions. A second season premiered on YouTube on March 1, 2016, and a fourth season on February 28, 2017. On April 20, 2017, MGM Television announced a partnership with Mark Burnett and Jeanie Buss to develop new WOW content. In June 2018, tapings for a new weekly program on AXS TV titled WOW: Women of Wrestling began on October 10, 2018, at the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles, with episodes airing in early 2019.

The series debuted on January 18 as part of AXS TV's "Friday Night Fights" lineup, marking WOW's first broadcast of new content in nearly eighteen years. It ran for two seasons on AXS TV before being cancelled in June 2020. On October 6, 2021, CBS Media Ventures entered a multi-year distribution agreement for new episodes in weekend syndication starting Fall 2022. The following day, April Mendez (formerly AJ Lee in WWE) joined as executive producer and color commentator.

Seasons

WOW Unleashed, a pay-per-view held on February 4, 2001, at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California, suffered from technical difficulties and a low buyrate. A second PPV, Spring Vengeance, was announced for April 8, 2001, during Unleashed but never occurred. Announcers were Lee Marshall and Bobby "The Brain" Heenan, while David McLane served as Master of Ceremonies.

Controversy

The professional wrestling world has seen its share of disputes, and Women of Wrestling is no exception. In 2020, Tessa Blanchard faced accusations of racism and bullying. WOW brought her in as a rehabilitation effort, but a conflict led to her being cut from the show. While many wrestlers have criticized Blanchard, the program has never publicly addressed her exit. More recently, the Tonga Twins were removed in 2024 following claims of bullying and injuring other performers. It remains unclear if they quit or were fired. Wrestlers like Princess Aussie and Wrecking Ball have spoken against them. The Tonga Twins have accused WOW of character defamation but have not commented further. WOW has also stayed silent on their removal.