Vince Russo Removed As The Head Writer Of TNA

[The Man They Call WMD]

Vince Russo has been removed from his post as the head of TNA's creative team, according to a report by ProWrestling.NET.

Russo has been replaced by Bruce Prichard, who is also in charge of TNA's talent relations.

Russo is not entirely gone, as he'll still be one of the senior writers for the show along with writer Matt Conway, but Bruce Prichard will now handle the overall direction of the shows and has the final say on the scripts.

This major change to TNA's creative structure has been in the works for several months and became official within the past week or so.

There are said to be mixed feelings in the TNA locker room regarding Bruce Prichard getting so much power in TNA so early into his run with the company - but at the same time, Russo's demotion is sure to make many people happy.

Huge news for TNA Creatinve.
Are you happy about the change?
Thoughts?

 

[Mick Overlast]

I know I'd love to hear what Jim Cornette has to say on the topic.

Anyway, I think this will be a good thing for TNA. I really wasn't entertained by anything they've been doing, and a new direction really can't be worse than where TNA was going.

 

[Straight-Edge]

Hell Yeah i'm happy. Maybe now we will see some interesting feuds/storylines now! Good Job, TNA!

 

[Rayne]

Posted way back on June 9th:

We once again play the "if this is true" game.

It's Lord of the Flies up in this bitch! TNA/IW is not performing up to expectations, and while I'm sure there are people that would love to interrupt me and tell me how TNA/IW is the greatest thing since the multiple orgasm, I'm quite sure that the company wasn't overhauled and Eric/Hogan brought in to bump ratings by 0.1. What's a classic method of deflecting blame to keep your job? Blame the politically weakest guy who can have responsibility assigned to him. Vince Russo, that's you.

I'm not jumping on the "Fire Russo!" train. I don't think anyone there is doing that swell of a job now, and I'm not familiar enough with TNA/IW's murky power structure to know who's responsible for what. I do know that in an era in which TNA/IW is defining themselves through change, Vince Russo's been the guy who's been there for the longest, not counting Jarrett, whose position within the company (both political and executive) pretty much precludes him from taking the fall.

His best booking days are behind him, anyhow; I don't see what Russo's bringing to the table that a room full of college dropouts couldn't do, and he hasn't been doing a good job of promoting himself either, which is vital in professional wrestling. He's the most expendable player; he'll be the first against the wall.

Called it. This is the kind of corporate move that's usually prevented when the person being demoted resigns his position beforehand as a point of pride. In professional wrestling, pride is really, really cheap. Being demoted to "senior writer" from "head of creative" is a pretty big ego buster.

But honestly, what would Vince Russo be doing if he wasn't sucking off the tit of his one good year in the '90s? Even with the demotion and virtually guaranteed pay cut that went along with it, he's still probably making out better than any alternatives.

 

[rokuma]

Kind of odd-timing. A few weeks before BFG? I don't know...And Bruce Prichard? Not sure if he's the right guy to bring in, but I guess time will tell if this is a good move. If it provides logical, interesting storylines then this is a HUGE bonus for TNA. They have the talent, it's just molding it into the right product that will entertain fans. (Hint: Less talking, more action...that's the big advantage they have over WWE!)

 

[aaronmb]

Maybe its really an angle to where Russo will interfere in the Hogan match and hit Sting with a chair. Sting retires. Hogan/Bischoff/Russo completely take over TNA and they tricked us all.

 

[Барбоса]

My immediate reaction was that this was strange timing given that we are only a few weeks from Bound For Glory. However, when I think about it, it does make some sense to make the change now. Any important storylines for BFG and immediately beyond should be in place already so rather than waiting until those are exhausted, Pritchard will get time to bed himself in.

And let's face it, it is not a massive change either even if Bischoff and Hogan's new contracts had anything to do with it. Russo has hardly been fired completely

 

[three count bout]

Meh, the proof is in the pudding here. If we see a noticeable difference in the overall show quality then perhaps there will be reason to get excited. The problem with creative is you can have some truly great ideas but if the execution of these are horrible then the ideas are reduced to nothing. I'm not sure if Russo was always to blame, but it would appear that he can no longer be used to define the shortcomings of every angle in IW. I love IW, and it seemed the Russo tenure as Head of Creative ran its course as this company HAS to prepare for its future which is shaping up nicely imo and it needs a visionary to support its continued growth.

 

[Lowdown]

I say its about time for something fresh. I don't know about Pritchard's history of politicking in WWE, but maybe he will provide better stability to the storylines in TNA. Perhaps no more constant heel and face turns, or trading off the championships (KO title included). Very eager to see if there will be visible changes in the upcoming weeks. Kudos!

 

[BigPoppaPunk]

I'm kind of skeptical here. Even though replacing Russo as head creative writer is a step in the right direction, it'll be interesting to see if that's a good or bad thing. I can't honestly view this as a bad decision, since Russo's brand of booking has ruined both WCW and TNA currently. I just hope Bruce Prichard can do a better job of getting TNA back on track and keep Russo's bad ideas in check. If that were to occur, it might just be the best move TNA has made in the last few years. However, if it's just for publicity and doesn't work out, I hope TNA goes with the idea of scrapping all the deadweight in their company and start fresh.

 

[TheBWO]

It doesn't mean that BFG isn't already written....so it shouldn't matter if they bring him in or not as the head at this time...and being that he already has been taking most of the job responsibilties, --whos to say that BP HIMSELF didn't already write BFG? It's not saying that Russo is gone for good, just that he's not the head anymore. Russo always needed someone to bounce ideas off of, and --well, I just hope that without the mainstays that Pritchard was used to in the politic game, that he can distinguish between right and wrong.

 

[MancMark]

Is it a coincidence that this has happened at the same time as Hogan and Eric sign new deals? I'd imagine neither of them particularly fancied working with Russo for much longer. I'm hoping this is the first step in getting Russo out of the door. Not sure he'll be happy about taking this particular hit to his ego. As for the fella who has got Russo's job, he can't possibly be any worse. It is literally impossible for him to be worse. Even if he came up with a Hardy/Abyss gay marriage angle, it would still beat most of the shite Russo has shat out of his writing hand over the years.

 

[Azane]

Time to start DVRing iMPACT again.
I'm usually for the "just watch and don't overanalyze" But Russo booking gives me a headache.

 

[Pepe Silvia]

And let's face it, it is not a massive change either even if Bischoff and Hogan's new contracts had anything to do with it. Russo has hardly been fired completely

Oh, but it is. Unless I'm misinterpreting the post, not only will Pritchard be penning the creative direction of the product, but he'll be McMahoning Russo's scripts. I assume it'd go down like this:

Pritchard: Alright, after AJ and Daniels finish up, we want Daniels to have a one-off with Roode. We'll plant the seeds for Roode and Joe to have a feud after that, to make Roode look stronger, but focus on Daniels for now. No tangents.

Russo grabs a pencil, fervently beginning to scratch words down on paper. His tongue gently pokes out of the corner of his mouth, a single drop of spittle cascading down the tip and splashing onto the corner of the page, out of reach from any of his wonderful written work. He'd hold the page above his head like he'd just found it in a chest in Zelda, and begin to explain his writing rather noisily.

Russo: OKAY! Well, remember how Daniels was the "Fallen Angel?" Well, God said he could get back into heaven if he beats Roode for the title, so he SENT DOWN A DRAGON TO HELP HIM! It'd be gray obviously, because there's no real faces or heels so you can't have it be black or white, it's gotta be SHADES OF GRAY! Okay, so, Earl Hebner notices it while he's having sex with Traci Brooks -- She's not married to Kazarian this week, it's only WRESTLING, no one will care -- and he says that it can't be directly involved in the match!

At this point, Pritchard is already rubbing his temples, his patience being tried by this "genius" angle.

Russo: So, so, I bet you don't know where I'm going with this. Anyway, the ghost of Jim Cornette comes out and declares that we'll have a DRAGON ON A POLE match! Now, I know you're probably wondering how we're going to get a dr-

Pritchard: Where to commit you?

Russo: HAHA, what a story, Bruce! Anyway, how's your sex life?

Pritchard: ...What?

Russo: How we're going to get a dragon! Well, we're going to take two of Hernandez's twelve cats, and glue them together, and put some papier-mâché horns on it. They won't notice, it's only WRESTLING! Oh, and I get to knock out Ghost Cornette because I'm cooler than him.

Pritchard has already left the room, Russo's masterpiece a flaming pile of excretion in the corner of the room. Somehow, in his incessant rambling, a sticky note had been slapped to his forehead; he peeled it off, glancing down to the words written on it: "No dragons. No ghosts. NO FUCKING POLE MATCHES. Write it again."

Russo looks rather dejected, shoulders slumped to a cartoon-y degree, as he makes his way over to his desk again, having somehow moved across the entire room while telling his brilliant idea; fire would flash in his eyes again, as he skipped the was of the way to his desk, grabbing his pencil and beginning to write again.

Russo: Ha! He didn't say anything about no Traci Books, I KNEW HE LIKED THAT PART! Okay, so, Traci's having sex with Daniels...

See how beneficial this could be for TNA? No fucking pole matches while Bruce is the head dick. Although, the dragon-cat coulda been cool.

Russo did some pretty cool stuff in WWE, like the "This is your life" segment and a bunch of other shit I can't be assed to remember. However, Vince McMahon was there to examine his scripts and cut out all most some of the crap. I'm assuming Pritchard isn't a moron, and will get rid of any fucking Knockout lock-box shit, or Frank Trigg appearances.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

As others have said, I find the timing of this to be a bit odd. With Hogan allegedly having re-signed with TNA, maybe one of the conditions for him to do so was a demotion for Vince Russo? Vince Russo has gotten poor reviews from just about everyone over the years but Dixie Carter has stayed loyal to him. At the same time, Hogan strikes me as one of the few people in TNA that Dixie Carter will do anything to please. If Hogan did ask for it, I'd have no problem believing he'd get it. At the same time though, maybe it's also possible that Dixie Carter has even started to lose faith in Russo, so Russo decided to take a step down instead of being let go altogether.

As far as Bruce Pritchard goes, there's already been complaints about him. Or, I should say alleged complaints. Allegedly, there's talk backstage that he's already brought a big level of backstage politics to TNA since his arrival.

It'll be interesting to see how things go from here on out but I'm not expecting any huge, dramatic changes that'll happen soon.

 

[hatehabsforever]

The timing of this alleged firing is somewhat suspect. Less than two weeks before BFG, with Hogan's future somewhat in question, I'm not sure I am even totally buying into this. I would not be one bit surprised to see this be a part of yet another illogical and convoluted storyline.

It will be interesting to see how the IWC reacts to this firing/demotion if it turns out to be legitimate. Russo has long been vilified for his adverse effects upon the progression of story lines in TNA. I wonder who the new scapegoat will turn out to be once Russo's de-focus has been in effect for a few months, and yet the direction continues to be stagnant and unclear. And I wonder how long it will be before the armchair quarterbacks long for the return of the tremendous mind of Vince Russo.

 

[fenfool]

I want to believe it's true...I'll believe it when I see it. Hopefully there is enough support to actually allow change to happen. And hopefully the good things with the company, e.g. Bobby Roode's run for the title, Austin Aires' title run, continue to develop well. We'll see what happens, but I will be watching. Bruce has more of a love for the business than Russo, so on paper it's a change in the right direction. The talent & fans deserve a change for the better.

 

[Dizzy]

Kind of odd-timing. A few weeks before BFG? I don't know...And Bruce Prichard? Not sure if he's the right guy to bring in, but I guess time will tell if this is a good move. If it provides logical, interesting storylines then this is a HUGE bonus for TNA. They have the talent, it's just molding it into the right product that will entertain fans. (Hint: Less talking, more action...that's the big advantage they have over WWE!)

It's not bad timing at all. This means he would be writing everything post-BFG which is basically the reset button to everything in the product now.

Logical and interesting? Isn't what they are doing interesting? It's far better than that crap shit in WWE right now. He just needs to make a consistent balanced show but we all know people will find fault in it.

 

[daddyJ_t]

i think this could be the start of a good thing for tna. im not the biggest tna fan, but i along with most people are familiar with russos work. finger poke of doom, arquette as world champ, then even having jeff jarrett lay down for hogan then stripping hogan of the title the same night and putting it back on jarrett. with him not being the head honcho anymore i think could be a good thing for tna

 

[czar76]

Time will tell if this is good or not. Prichard has the history and the know how but making it work is a different story.
Side note an earlier post stated that Russo scripted the "finger poke of doom" that isn't the case. Everyone blames him for it but the fact is he wasn't working for WCW at the time. That was likely scripted by Kevin Nash who was the booker at the time. Could be wrong but to my knowledge no one has ever taken full credit for it. Russo came on board shortly after that took place.

 

[kor420]

Meh, the proof is in the pudding here. If we see a noticeable difference in the overall show quality then perhaps there will be reason to get excited. The problem with creative is you can have some truly great ideas but if the execution of these are horrible then the ideas are reduced to nothing. I'm not sure if Russo was always to blame, but it would appear that he can no longer be used to define the shortcomings of every angle in IW. I love IW, and it seemed the Russo tenure as Head of Creative ran its course as this company HAS to prepare for its future which is shaping up nicely imo and it needs a visionary to support its continued growth.

I Can tell you that every "Fire Russo Chant" that we heard, Russo had NO part in booking those matches and the "THIS IS AWSOME" chant, yes you guessed it russo booked it..

But russo ideas are stale, i think they should keep him on because sometimes out of the shitty ideas, there is a golden one.

 

[Defekt]

Russo's demotion should be a positive for TNA. While there's no way for a fan to know who booked what, having seen the dying days of WCW (when Vince Russo had full control), his involvement is not good for the company in my opinion.

 

[Gunnar]

TNA = WCW. Hogan and Bischoff in control, Russo booking matches, Jeff Jarrett? I mean come on, in it's quest to become different than WWE, TNA has become WCW, and i'm sure it will soon suffer the same fate as WCW did, that is unless TNA goes back to what made it popular (imo) in the first place, the cruiserweight/x division, now it's all blurred together, and it's turning into the WCW where the wrestlers book their own matches and wins/losses, which ends badly.

in order for TNA to have any sort of longevity (past this point), it needs to seperate itself from the WWE, not just by trying to do the same thing WWE is doing with old WWE wrestlers.

We need an AJ Styles vs Christopher Daniels X Division match, where the x Division guys can shine, because WWE doesn't care about them.

Also, making sure that Bischoff and Hogan's ego's don't get in front of the company will help out too.

 

[Alittude]

TNA = WCW. Hogan and Bischoff in control, Russo booking matches, Jeff Jarrett? I mean come on, in it's quest to become different than WWE, TNA has become WCW, and i'm sure it will soon suffer the same fate as WCW did, that is unless TNA goes back to what made it popular (imo) in the first place, the cruiserweight/x division, now it's all blurred together, and it's turning into the WCW where the wrestlers book their own matches and wins/losses, which ends badly.

in order for TNA to have any sort of longevity (past this point), it needs to seperate itself from the WWE, not just by trying to do the same thing WWE is doing with old WWE wrestlers.

We need an AJ Styles vs Christopher Daniels X Division match, where the x Division guys can shine, because WWE doesn't care about them.

Also, making sure that Bischoff and Hogan's ego's don't get in front of the company will help out too.

Aj and Daniels headlines Destination X a few months ago and are currently involved in a main feud. What the hell are you on about. Another ignorant TNA hater.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I think this is a good move forward for TNA, Russo can come up with a really good idea now and then but alot of his stuff is just repeating the stuff he did 10 years ago, and doing it worse, and alot of it wasnt even that great then. TNA needs to distance itself from Russo's booking, as being associated with Russo makes TNA look like shit.

Pritchard will hopefully be able to put some focus into TNA's booking, and stop the company from heading the way of WCW, which was looking like a real possibility with Vinny Russo as the head booker.

I hope to see a big improvement in TNA programming in the near future, with the focus on the (soon to be) champ Bobby Roode, and the other stars who actually have a future in the business, instead of washed-up has-beens like Hogan and Sting.

As I said in a post yesterday, TNA have a great roster but they don't make the most of it. Maybe now they will, or at least fucking try to!