Stephanie McMahon: Executives didn’t make WWE women’s evolution happen
In a new podcast, Stephanie McMahon and AJ Lee addressed their Twitter controversy from 2015.
The social media exchange from more than a decade ago saw Lee fire back at McMahon over a tweet regarding equal pay for women. McMahon applauded actress Patricia Arquette for using an Oscars speech to advocate for the issue — and Lee responded by pointing out that women in WWE did not make the same money as their male counterparts or get equal screen time despite having record-breaking merchandise sales and highly rated TV segments.
McMahon said on “What’s Your Story?” that she appreciated Lee’s directness and was actually happy that she posted the tweet, though she did not like that the post was directed at her specifically. McMahon credited all of the female stars throughout wrestling history for making the women’s evolution a reality, saying it happened because of them and not because of executives.
“I was actually happy that you posted that,” McMahon said. “I wasn’t happy that it was directed at me because it wasn’t anything I had direct control over. But I was really happy that you did because that movement, the whole women’s evolution in WWE, it didn’t happen because of executives or it didn’t happen because, I mean, maybe along the way, people voicing their opinions — but it really happened because of the women who paved the way all the way back to the beginning of all of these incredible women who have been inside the squared circle no matter what promotion they were in.
“But then for our audience, when they started the hashtag ‘Give Divas a Chance’ at that time, that’s what couldn’t be ignored. And the audience would never have gotten behind the movement if it weren’t for people like you who actually stood up for women publicly and take on the machine a little bit. It was a big deal, I thought.”
Lee responded by saying she knew she was taking a risk with the tweet, but you have to take risks to get what you truly want in life.
“I appreciate that,” Lee said. “And I feel like change doesn’t happen unless there’s sacrifice. You have to be willing to lose everything to get what you want. I feel like in every aspect of life — playing it safe might give you a safe life, but I don’t know if it gives you an exceptional life. And so I felt like that was worth it, whatever backlash was going to be. But I thought you were cool after. Like, everyone was pretty chill. It was business and I appreciate that. But, you know, it was a rough time.”
“I mean, there was a lot of things happening at that time [laughs],” McMahon replied. “So I’m sure everyone could read into it however they wanted. But it was so important. You know, it was a really important public-facing step.”
Lee retired from WWE in April 2015 and spent more than a decade away from the ring until returning this September. She’s set to compete in WarGames at Survivor Series this Saturday, where it will be Lee, Rhea Ripley, IYO SKY, Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss vs. Becky Lynch, Asuka, Kairi Sane, Nia Jax & Lash Legend.
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.