7 Things we learned from Brodie Lee on Chris Jericho's Podcast

#3 Vince McMahon wouldn't release him for business reasons

The reason was quite interesting (Pic Source: AEW/WWE)

Brodie Lee was growing tired as he knew that he wasn't booked very well in WWE. Some of the ideas that he committed to were not just working from him, ranging from poor placement in Battle Royals to being Sami Zayn's sidekick.

A canceled SmackDown appearance after WrestleMania 35 seemed to be the last straw, and he made his mind to ask for his release.

Vince McMahon called him to know the reason behind him asking for a release, and he was not aware that other people were also asking for their release. Lee decided to go public with his release request as he wanted to control the narrative. Shawn Spears had done something similar and was granted his release.

But that was not the case for Brodie. He recalls that Vince McMahon called him a second time and said:

"I thought they were gonna do it. After the second conversation with Vince, he called me and said, 'Hey man, for business reasons, I can't let you go.', and I said, 'Okay, it's totally fair, it's your decision obviously.'"

Of course, it was intimated that this was after AEW happened, and Chris Jericho had signed with them. AEW may have played a role in McMahon delaying Lee's release.