'Dynamite' Here To Stay? AEW Signs Four-Year Extension With TNT, Will Add Second Weekly Show

Fan rejoice: All-Elite Wrestling (AEW) is here to stay and will be expanding its TV presence. The fresh-faced professional wrestling promotion, which launched in 2019, has signed a multi-year extension to continue broadcasting on TNT through 2023. The company will also be adding a second weekly show to complement its flagship show, “Dynamite,” in the near future.

“When we launched AEW one year ago, we wanted to start a revolution that would disrupt the wrestling business, but everyone said that it would take a strong weekly television partner to make AEW real in the eyes of everyone – above all, the fans,” AEW President and CEO Tony Khan said in a statement. “… Here we are, only four months into ‘Wednesday Night Dynamite,’ and now we’ve been extended through 2023! We’re now making the ultimate statement that the team of AEW and TNT is here to stay and to bring fans more of the great wrestling that the fans demand and deserve.”

The four-year deal is reportedly worth $175 million, or nearly $45 million a year. The second show will reportedly run an hour and be taped on Wednesdays to air on another date. AEW already tapes matches for the show “AEW Dark” prior to “Dynamite,” but this airs on the promotion’s YouTube channel instead of cable.

Formed in collaboration with Khan and wrestlers like Cody Rhodes, the Young Bucks, and Kenny Omega, AEW was announced last January and ran its first Pay-Per-View show (PPV), “Double or Nothing” in May. Later, the company’s first weekly live show, “Dynamite,” premiered in October. Airing in competition with WWE’s NXT live television show on USA on Wednesdays, “Dynamite” has bested the show in head-to-head ratings almost every week. The show has, however, never matched the viewership of bigger WWE programs like “Monday Night Raw” on USA and “Friday Night Smackdown” on Fox.

“The fans have spoken and after only three months, we have seen AEW shake up the wrestling world and this will only continue as we build upon this momentum,” said Kevin Reilly, the chief content officer for TNT.

In addition to Rhodes, the Bucks, and Omega, AEW features talent like World Champion Chris Jericho, Women’s Champion Riho, Tag Team Champions So-Cal Uncensored, “Hangman” Adam Page, PAC, Jon Moxley, Britt Baker, Orange Cassidy, and Dustin Rhodes. Its next PPV show, “Revolution,” will air Feb. 29 on platforms like Bleacher Report Live.