Johnny TV feels ‘underutilized’ in AEW right now
Johnny TV’s recent main event match in CMLL helped reinvigorate his love for wrestling — even if he lost his hair in the process.
The former John Morrison lost to Angel de Oro in a hair vs. hair match at CMLL’s Friday night Arena Mexico card on February 27. On a new episode of Insight with Chris Van Vliet, he reflected on the experience and how much it meant to him. Johnny TV feels “underutilized” in AEW right now, which he thinks is something a lot of people in wrestling are going through. Some people are inevitably going to get left out when there are so many wrestlers and only a few spots on television.
“That hair match, I feel like was one of the best matches I’ve had in years. It was the first time in a while that I felt like me again,” Johnny TV said.
“Kind of just being off or feeling unfulfilled, basically. Not just me, a lot of people in wrestling. But for me right now, in AEW, I feel underutilized. Can’t blame anyone, that’s just how wrestling promotions work. There’s only enough TV time for a certain amount of people. Those people at AEW, we’ve coined the term ‘the island.’ Those people are on the island, so to speak. And I don’t feel like I’m on the island with Tony [Khan] or AEW right now. So because of that, I feel like I’m doing like 10-20 percent of what I’m capable of, storytelling-wise, wrestling-wise, in the ring. With CMLL, I’m on their island. And so I got to do everything that I could, and it was cool. It made me realize, like, ‘Hey, yeah, I do love wrestling.'”
Johnny TV signed with AEW in 2023 and has been wrestling in AEW, ROH, and CMLL. He and his wife Taya Valkyrie are featured in the AEW YouTube show “Johnny Loves Taya,” which recently returned with its second season. It’s a scripted romantic comedy series.
During the appearance on Insight, the 46-year-old Johnny TV said he still feels like he’s capable of being a World Champion at this point in his career. Some of his dream opponents in AEW are “Speedball” Mike Bailey, Kevin Knight, Kenny Omega, Jon Moxley, and Will Ospreay.
Putting his hair on the line is something Johnny has been thinking about for a long time. He initially thought about doing it in a hair vs. mask match while Fenix was still with AEW.
“You know, I’m liking it. I like all the feedback,” Johnny responded when asked if he’ll be keeping the shaved head going forward. “It’s a weird question. I’m a grown man — deciding if this is ‘my look’ moving forward.”
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.