Renowned professional wrestler Paul Donald Wight II, better known by his stage name The Big Show, has signed a new deal with WWE competitorAll Elite Wrestling. Wight will join AEW as both a competitive wrestler and as a commentator for the company’s new showAEW Dark: Elevation, which will focus on highlighting established and rising stars on its roster.
AEW is a professional wrestling company founded in 2019 by Jacksonville Jaguars co-owner Tony Khan, with financial backing from billionaire Shahid Khan. Although a relatively new company, AEW has established itself as one of themore serious competitors to WWE. The company headlines many former WWE wrestlers, including Cody and Brandi Rhodes, Kenny Omega, the Young Bucks, Chris Jericho, Sting, Hangman Page, and Jon Moxley.
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Using his years of professional wrestling experience, Wight will act as a mentor for young talent at AEW, in addition to educating viewers about the industry as a commentator. In a statement, Wight said of the transition, “AEW Dark is an incredible platform to hone the skills of up-and-coming wrestlers, but I also love that established AEW talent can build out their personalities and showcase themselves in new ways on Dark." Wight added that it is not an exaggeration to say that AEW is “boundless.”
Wight’s career as a professional wrestler took off in the mid-’90s when he signed withWorld Championship Wrestling(WCW). Due to his large frame, he was originally known in the ring asThe Giantand would even be introduced as “the son of André the Giant.” In 1999, Wight left WCW andsigned with theWorld Wrestling Federation(WWF), which would go on to become the WWE. He is a seven-time world champion, having held the WCW World Heavyweight Championship twice, the WWF/WWE Championship twice, WWE’s World Heavyweight Championship twice, and the ECW World Heavyweight Championship once, making him the only wrestler to have won all four titles.
Like many other famous wrestlers,such as Dwayne Johnson/The Rockand Stone Cold Steve Austin, Wight has also made a name for himself in Hollywood. He’s made memorable appearances in several big films, such as the Arnold Schwarzenegger Christmas farceJingle All the Way,and on the small screen with TV shows like USA Network’sBurn NoticeandStar Trek: Enterprise.
More recently, Wight has even starred inhis very own sitcomtitledThe Big Show Show.The series, which focused on a fictional version of Big Show as he tries to raise his three daughters with his wife, was canceled after one season on Netflix.
AEW Dark: Elevationis set to debut March 15th on AEW’s YouTube channel.
