"Not true" - Bruce Prichard kills WWE RAW rumor

WWE RAW's debut on Netflix earlier this year garnered a lot of attention. Throughout its run, the red brand had become a staple of cable and network television. However, in a new dawn, WWE's flagship show is now a part of the streaming giant's offerings.

Over the years, Monday Night RAW has switched from being a two-hour show to a three-hour weekly episodic program. So, when the shows moved to Netflix, there was a belief that RAW would have a flexible runtime, depending on what they wanted to do.

WWE's Chief Content Officer, Triple H, mentioned that they wouldn't have the limitations of cable or network television. However, Bruce Prichard, the executive director of the creative team, has dismissed the notion.

In the first episode of WWE: Unreal, the Netflix docuseries giving fans a look into how the writers' room operates in the company, Prichard shed light on RAW's runtime on the OTT platform.

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"People had in their own minds that, 'it's Netflix, we can go two hours, we can go three hours, we can go four hours if we want.' Not true," he said. [From 46:10 onwards]

Bruce Prichard said this during the main event of RAW's debut on Netflix, which saw CM Punk face Seth Rollins. The match reportedly went overtime, which is something they had to be careful about.

Notably, the match was produced by Chris Park, aka TNA legend Abyss.

Bruce Prichard's words contradict Triple H's earlier assertion about WWE

While Bruce Prichard made it clear that RAW is running on a fixed schedule on Netflix, his comments seem to contradict what Triple H said just before RAW's Netflix premiere.

Talking on the SI Media podcast with Jimmy Traina, The Game mentioned that earlier, if a segment went over its allotted time, they would have to adjust the time for the rest of the show to stay in line with its schedule and ad breaks. However, with Netflix, he said there won't be any such issues.

"I think we'll have a little bit more freedom in the format here. I think we'll have a little bit more freedom to say if two hours, you know, is not enough time to get everybody in the show," he said. [From 3:36 onwards]

Right now, RAW keeps a runtime of three hours on Netflix. While it can change in the future, it seems they are still running on a schedule, adhering to the platform's fixed timings, according to Bruce Prichard.

If you use quotes from this article, please credit WWE: Unreal on Netflix and the SI Media podcast, and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.

About the author

Sherjeel Malik is a writer at Sportskeeda and covers pro wrestling. He was hooked on the product from the moment he saw The Hardy Boyz jumping off ladders during the Attitude Era. While he comes from an engineering background, Sherjeel’s love for pro wrestling and content writing led him to pursue a career in sports journalism. Before assuming his current role at Sportskeeda, Sherjeel worked at other reputable organizations for five years.

While writing articles, he ensures that he only relies on credible sources for information and covers relevant subjects that do not project an agenda against a particular person or association. WWE legend Paul Heyman once shared Sherjeel’s work on his social media handle.

Sherjeel’s earliest memory of pro wrestling is watching Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Undertaker square off for the WWE Title in the main event of a pay-per-view in 1998. His favorite wrestlers are Randy Orton and Jeff Hardy. While he admires Orton for his character work as a heel, he looks up to Jeff because of his unique wrestling style and risk-taking ability.

If he could go back to the Attitude Era, Sherjeel would like to manage Ken Shamrock and be his mouthpiece. He feels Shamrock’s promo skills prevented him from becoming a main event-level act in WWE. Hence, he would like to help the UFC Hall of Famer get over with fans.

When not writing about pro wrestling, he likes to read classics and fiction books.

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Edited by Sanchari Bhattacharya