Moxley Shoots On His Unhappiness In WWE

Jon Moxley aka Dean Ambrose was this week’s guest on Chris Jericho’s Talk Is Jericho podcast. The interview was recorded prior to his AEW debut at ‘Double Or Nothing’.

The interview, which is titled ‘The Emancipation of Jon Moxley’ provides an inside look on what the former Dean Ambrose dealt with during his last year in the WWE.

Moxley didn’t pull any punches with what he thought of WWE’s creative process and Vince McMahon.

He revealed when he decided he wanted to leave the company, his thoughts on the Nia Jax angle, the segment that solidified his exit from the company, and how Vince McMahon wanted him to say additional lines about Roman Reigns cancer.

The full interview is now available to stream, but we’ve put together 11 of the biggest takeaways from the show.

Grateful For His Time In WWE

Before Moxley provided details on how unhappy he was in the company, he stated he was extremely grateful for his time in WWE.

Moxley spoke about how he enjoyed working with Make-A-Wish, as well as meeting his wife in the company. He also stated he met his best friend in WWE, which is his wife Renee Young.

Decided He Wanted To Leave Last July

While on the shelf with an injury, he decided he wanted to leave WWE. Last July, Moxley made the decision he was done with the company, but rather than ask for his release, he said he would ride it out.

Distasteful Promos About Roman Reigns Cancer

Moxley was not happy about speaking about Roman Reigns battle with leukaemia. He felt the promos were distasteful, and was disgusted with additional lines Vince McMahon wrote for him to say. He feels that one promo, which he couldn’t repeat on-air would have got people fired, as well as faced backlash from WWE sponsors.

Felt His Angle With Nia Jax Was To Bury Him

After informing the management he had plans to leave the company, Moxley was in a brief angle with Nia Jax.

Moxley had no issues with Nia Jax, and praised her work, but felt the timing was fishy, and the company did that specifically to bury him.

When speaking to Vince McMahon about the angle, Vince felt like it was great because it would be a “special attraction”.

Nix Jax and Dean Ambrose were booked to have live event matches, but those didn’t end up happening.

If WWE Paid Him $10M He Would Have Not Stayed

Money was no motivation for Jon Moxley. He stated in the interview that if WWE paid him $10,000,000 he still would have not signed a new contract.

Moxley stated his house and truck is paid off, and had no use for that amount of money over his happiness.

Vince McMahon Is The Problem

The root of all WWE’s problems is Vince McMahon. Moxley spoke in-depth about how Vince McMahon’s creative process is broken.

He was not too keen on having to read scripted promos, and then have to argue to Vince McMahon to have changes made.

He spoke on going into Vince’s office to have promos revised due to not liking the wording in the script.

Before returning to WWE following his injury, Moxley flew himself to WWE headquarters in Stamford, CT and pitched ideas to Vince McMahon personally. These ideas clearly fell on deaf ears from McMahon.

The Straw That Broke The Camels Back

Moxley knew 100% he would be leaving the company on November 26, 2018, following the segment where he got a needle from a fake doctor on RAW.

The segment had Moxley receive a “rabies shot” before going to RAW the following week. He spoke on how much he hated the promo, and even found a quiet space in the building that day to dwell on how unhappy he was with doing these segments.

He Didn’t Even Look At The New WWE Contract Offered To Him

WWE began offering new deals to talent, and Moxley was itching to let the company know his plans on not re-signing.

When he finally was provided a new contract, he stated he left it in an envelope and has not looked at it to this day.

Clearly he wasn’t interested in anything WWE offered him, and even stated how he didn’t discuss money with AEW prior to signing a deal with them.

Moxley Hated Scripted Promos 

One of the biggest takeaways from Moxley’s interview with Chris Jericho is his immense hatred of scripted promos.

He felt like he was being micromanaged so much on to what lines to read, and if he had issued with them it was a constant battle with Vince McMahon.

He recalled how WWE began making him feel sick and anxious to the point he would wake up in the morning and just stare at the ceiling dreading having to go to work.

He spoke on one promo which stood out as one of the worst, where he would have made a joke about a pooper scooper. It was at the time he was feuding with Seth Rollins, and he would speak about how the fans were smelly and disgusting. The line that was pitched to him included, “I wouldn’t come out there without a pooper scooper”.

Moxley spoke on receiving a letter from one of the writers titled “notes from VKM” which advised him he needed to read his lines verbatim, instead of rewriting them

Needless to say, Moxley was not a fan of WWE’s creative process and scripted promos.

$500 Payday For Shield’s Final Match

WWE provided Moxley a great sendoff, going as far as putting together a whole Network special focused on The Shield’s last match in the company.

Moxley spoke on how they flew writers and cameramen in for this special event, and he ended up only receiving $500 for his match that night.

Despite only making that amount for his last match, he will continue to get paid royalties from merchandise sold in the future with his likeness.

He Filmed His Comeback Promo In February

Moxley filmed his comeback promo while he was still under WWE contract. He explained he had two days off in February, and flew to Los Angeles alongside fellow CZW alum Nick Mondo.

Mondo runs a media company and filmed the entire promo vignette which cost Moxley $8000 in total.