Netflix’s $5 billion deal for the rights to stream WWE programming is one of the biggest business moves in the platform’s history. The 10-year agreement is massive, and it signifies a shift towards more live content on the streaming service.
Along with offering hit shows like WWE Raw, Netflix also has plans to broaden its wrestling options with additional content. Along with behind-the-scenes documentaries, it could even potentially explore the concept of a dramatised spinoff.
Netflix Clearly Wants to Expand its WWE Offerings
After spending so much money on the WWE deal, it’s clear that Netflix wants to make the most of it. There are set to be several WWE spinoffs coming to the platform, along with loads of archived footage from past offerings.
One of the most exciting announcements is WWE: Unreal, which is set to air in summer 2025. The series will take viewers back-stage to the writers’ room, where a lot of the famous rivalries are first imagined. It will also follow some of the main superstars and show what their lives are like outside the ring.
Netflix has shown, with some IPs like Squid Game, that it’s happy to combine reality options with fictional content. The Korean series was recently accompanied by Squid Game: The Challenge, which featured real people taking on some of the games from the show.
Netflix could potentially go the other way with its WWE content, and commission a fictional series that draws inspiration from the real content shown on events like WWE Raw.
A Drama Set in the WWE Universe Could Be Interesting
With a lot of the WWE being heavily scripted to make the whole competition more like a soap opera than a sport, it would lend itself well to a fully fictional drama. One of the biggest reasons why WWE is so popular is thanks to its heavily dramatised disagreements between different wrestlers. A drama spinoff could take this one step further, and focus more on the relationships between different characters and lessen the action in the ring.
There are many directions that this could go in. One option would be to include a popular WWE star as the main character, with someone like John Cena acting as a highly marketable lead. Another angle could be to make a drama about up-and-coming wrestlers, trying to cut it against the greats in the WWE.
Yet Another Way to Draw in Audiences
Netflix is great at boosting franchises by giving people a variety of touchpoints to get familiar with them. The great thing about the WWE is that there are already tons of ways for people to discover it for the first time outside of Netflix.
For instance, there’s the WWE 2K series for console players. There’s also the WWE Clash of the Wilds online slot game, which can be found among other Megaways casino offerings, such as Rick and Morty Megaways and The Goonies Megaways. A drama spinoff would add another way for Netflix to boost the WWE’s appeal with a wider audience.
WWE is set to be even bigger and better than before on Netflix, and there’s the potential for loads of original offerings. A fictional drama series could be a massive hit, and it may be something that Netflix decides to explore.