This is the explanation of the writing in AEW. All Elite Wrestling doesn't have a writing team, unlike WWE, where most storylines are created by HHH and his writers. In WWE, HHH, aka Paul Levesque, is the head and lead writer of the shows, helped by his team of writers. Paul serves as the company’s Chief Content Officer and maintains final authority over both RAW and SmackDown storylines.
The WWE team of writers is divided into two:
Smackdown Writers: Brian “Road Dogg” James, John Swikata, and their team.
RAW Writers: Jonathan Baekstrom, Ryan Ward, and their team.
However, there is controversy within the WWE over their decision to use AI and ChatGPT in their writing, especially for their PLEs such as WrestleMania. WWE admits and proudly confesses that they are using AI for their storylines.
Especially when they said they want to stick with the PG to PG13 crowd for their target audience, as it's the biggest draw for their episodes. Not only that, AI is free and they might want to let go of some writers because of the budget cuts.
AEW is a bit different in this case. Tony Khan doesn't write, but he does have the seal of approval or disapproval for the plots in AEW:
AEW’s creative setup remains more fluid, operating without a formal writing staff or tiered hierarchy. Tony Khan continues to oversee all creative decisions personally, serving as the central figure who approves every major storyline, match finish, and character arc.
Instead of designating “lead writers,” AEW uses a collective of contributors who assist Tony Khan with ideas, formatting, and presentation. Those involved include Will Washington, Sonjay Dutt, RJ City, Emmy-winning writer Jenn Pepperman, and QT Marshall.
Will Washington mostly writes drama, especially for Black wrestlers, and Sonjay Dutt writes comedy or unusual plots. RJ City is well known to be the brain behind Toni Storm (both of them are working together to create Timeless Toni Storm), QT Marshall writes everything, even for the jobbers, and Jenn Pepperman specifically writes for Mercedes Mone and some female wrestlers.
Additionally, AEW’s veteran coaches and producers, including Dean Malenko, Pat Buck, Jerry Lynn, and Michael Nakazawa, play an active role in developing in-ring stories and mentoring talent on executing segments that fit AEW's broader creative vision.
This collaborative environment allows talent greater freedom in shaping their promos and match layouts, though final calls on major programs and finishes still rest with Tony Khan.
Rocky Romero is one of the most important people in professional wrestling today. He’s the connector of the wrestling world that allows for a lot of the inter-promotional collaborations; he collaborates with other companies and sometimes determines what kind of crossover storylines from those companies. The Forbidden Door is a prime example of how he and the other companies are working together.
After his retirement (at the moment), Bryan Danielson is now working as a commentator, producer, and also a contributor and collaborator for the storylines. His most well-known story was his death at the hands of the Death Riders. It's one of the most controversial storylines, but it wasn't Tony Khan's writing. It was Bryan Danielson and RJ City's story.
Some wrestlers usually after their retirement, work backstage and collaborate with the plots and the characters. After Chuck Taylor retired from wrestling, he is now working as a coach, story collaborator (mostly for Orange Cassidy and The Conglomeration), and producer for the matches.
Brandon Cutler, Colt Cabana, and Jon Cruz are the producers and collaborators for AEW matches. Brandon is mostly working on The Young Bucks' stories, Colt Cabana brought the Costco guy, and Jon Cruz is working with MJF and Angelico.
There are plenty of collaborators and contributors for the storylines in AEW, so it's not solely from Tony Khan. AEW doesn't monopolize stories and plots, which is why there is much diversity and a unique blend of plots and characters.
Full-time wrestlers and managers can also produce and contribute to the storylines; most notably are Darby Allin (he is a stuntman IRL), Chris Jericho, The Young Bucks, Orange Cassidy, Nyla Rose, Dalton Castle, Thekla, Christian Cage, Adam Copeland, MVP, Jeff Jarrett, Ruby Soho, Toni Storm, MJF, Christopher Daniels, Kenny Omega (he is the director of operations), and many more.
The stories and matches can change instantly, even during the match, depending on the situation, and everyone needs to work fast because most of the time they are LIVE. Sometimes, they are testing the water to see whether a group/faction/trio/pairing works. Sometimes they don't. And they are not solely Tony Khan's fault. Maybe they are not compatible in real life, no chemistry, feud IRL, so they have to break them up or move them around, so everyone gets a fair share.
As I already explained before, sometimes the stipulation for a match can change in a second, depending on the Pro Wrestling Commission Board in certain states. When they have already practiced the match and done the dress rehearsal before the episode or event, somehow they need to change because of the action and violence. Once again, the blame is not solely coming from the owner of AEW.
It's a well-oiled machine in AEW, and fans need to remember that there are many people involved in their favorite wrestler, match, plot, etc. It's not strictly Tony Khan who handles things.
There is still work to be done, especially with how young AEW is, and there's room for improvement. The women's division needs to be focused on, too, and maybe add more women to the writing contributors. It's slow progress, and it's going in the right direction, and hopefully, fans will support everyone so the company gets better. Positive reinforcement and constructive criticism are a good thing instead of the usual insult and mockery whenever things don't go as fans expect.
How do you expect a company to get better if the fans' auto response is threats and scornful remarks whenever things don't go their way?
