Tony Khan is already dealing with the madness of putting Forbidden Door together, but he is not ruling out making the event even bigger.
While speaking to 107.7 The Bone, the AEW President was asked about the possibility of expanding Forbidden Door with more wrestling promotions. Khan made it clear that AEW is always looking around the world, and the company sees outside talent as one of its biggest strengths.
“Well, it’s definitely the case right now that there’s a lot of great wrestling in the world. And with AEW, we’re trying to embrace that.”
That is not just talk, either. Tony Khan said AEW works with several companies globally, not only to scout wrestlers but also to help build relationships with other promotions.
“We work with a lot of promotions, partner with other wrestling companies all over the world. We try to scout wrestlers but also develop wrestlers and wrestling companies and we’re working with a number of companies.”
Forbidden Door has already gone beyond just AEW and NJPW. Khan pointed out that CMLL and Stardom have also become part of the event, giving AEW access to top talent from Mexico and Japan.
“We’ve added more participants to Forbidden Door like you said, great wrestlers from Mexico with CMLL, which is a tremendous partner for us, and Stardom, some of the top women wrestlers in Japan coming over and wrestling here for AEW.”
That expansion matters because Forbidden Door is not exactly an easy show to put together. Khan previously told Q93 Alexandria that the event comes with a lot of headaches, including international logistics, work visas, and working with other promoters who may have different ideas about how their stars should be used. Khan explained that securing visas can be one of the biggest challenges when bringing in international wrestlers.
“Well, that’s a great question. There are a lot of logistics and of course securing the visas. Sometimes there can be a great international wrestler that doesn’t have the work visa, and you want to try to get those people in.”
He also admitted that cross-promotional booking means dealing with other companies and balancing everyone’s priorities.
“And then you’re working with the other promoters to try to utilize the stars they want to use, and you might have different ideas from your counterparts in these other companies.”
Still, Khan clearly loves the upside. He said AEW is excited about this weekend’s Forbidden Door event, and more wrestlers and promotions could join the mix in future years.
“And we’re really excited about the event this weekend, but like you said, there’s a lot of great wrestling promotions and in the future, yes, we could look to add more wrestlers and more wrestling promotions to send people for this event. And a lot of our events feature outside wrestlers coming in from all over the world. That’s one of the real highlights of AEW.”
So, Forbidden Door may already be a logistical nightmare behind the scenes, but Khan does not sound scared of adding more fuel to the fire. If anything, he seems to think AEW’s international partnerships are exactly what make the company different. Forbidden Door has become AEW’s global playground, and Khan’s comments suggest the guest list may only get longer from here. The question now is which promotion gets invited next.
What do you think about Tony Khan possibly expanding Forbidden Door with more promotions? Which company should AEW bring into the event next? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
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