Post by Rando on Sept 24, 2020 17:20:37 GMT
The scene: Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins and the University of Miami Hurricanes football teams. And today the location for a much anticipated press conference, where members of the sports, entertainment and wrestling enthusiast press all gather together to get more information about the largest development in recent memory in the world of professional wrestling: the founding of a new wrestling company to compete at the highest level, a new premiere brand. The crowd is settling into their assigned spots just as an announcement comes over the loud speaker.
Announcer: Ladies and gentleman, the Chairman of the Board for Legacy Pro, Dwayne Johnson.
Dwayne Johnson: Wow. You know I've been planning this for a while, but if I'm being honest, it didn’t feel real until I just came out here.
Johnson pulls out a prepared statement, which he starts reading from.
Dwayne Johnson: Before we get started, I wanted to say thank you. Thank you to the press, friends and family who have gathered here today. Thank you to the Hard Rock Stadium for hosting this announcement event. And of course thank you to my partners at Red Bird Capital who helped me make this dream a reality. You know, my whole life there have been two constant loves. Football, and wrestling. In fact, I grew up in a family that truly loved those two things. And today I embark on the next stage of my career in the world of professional wrestling, not as a performer, but as an owner. As I’m sure everyone here has already heard, in two weeks we’ll be launching a new wrestling promotion, which we can confirm today is called Legacy Pro. Now as a lot of your here know, I come from a long wrestling legacy, one that I hope I was able to live up to during my time in the sport. And the name of this company was meant to convey the mission: to allow the men and women who wrestle under our banner the opportunity to establish their own legacy. Don’t mistake this as a vanity project for myself. This isn't about me, but rather an opportunity to payback the industry that helped get me to where I am today, to help the next generation of talent thrill audiences around the world.
Johnson pauses for a moment for polite applause from the audience before continuing his prepared statement.
Dwayne Johnson: In an attempt to create the best place for wrestlers in the world, we had to think about things differently. That is why we have partnered with industry leading organizations. I am pleased to announce that Legacy Pro will be making their global premiere, live on Saturday night, October 10th and we’ll be proudly broadcast by our partners at the Walt Disney Company via ESPN.
The Legacy Pro logo is replaced by the ESPN logo, while another round of polite applause and flash photography flashes. Rock pauses for a second before he continues.
Dwayne Johnson: ESPN and ESPN+ will be the exclusive home to the Legacy Pro flagship show, Ignited, which will be airing every other week out to a global audience. This partnership reflects the standard of excellence that we plan to offer our fans at home. We aim to bring nothing less than the most exciting, competitive and electrifying wrestling that the world has ever seen.
A bit of the Rock comes out when Johnson hits that electrifying, an impish grin playing on his face.
Dwayne Johnson: To reflect just some of that excellence, I wanted to announce just two of our executive team that will be appearing on Legacy Pro programming such as Ignited. First is the chief commentator for Ignited, and the host of our off-week news program, Legacy Pro Beyond. Please welcome seven-time Emmy winner, Scott Stanford!
The theme song for Ignited, “Time is Now" by Atreyu, plays as Stanford emerges from the back to polite applause. He waves to the crowd before shaking hands with Johnson, who then steps back to give him the podium. As he steps up, the music dies down.
Scott Stanford: Well it is truly an honor to be here today. When Mr. Johnson first talked to me about his vision for a new wrestling promotion, the lifelong wrestling fan in me was excited. Excited for the opportunity to be part of something so momentous, but also excited purely as a fan. This is a promotion that is focused on putting on high-quality shows with the best wrestlers, men and women, on the planet. And we have assembled a high-tier commentary team with my expert partners, Wade Barrett and Lita.
A smattering of applause for the eclectic announce crew.
Scott Stanford: And as the Rock--I’m sorry, it’s wrestling, you’re not going to be known as “Mr. Johnson.” As the Rock just announced, on weeks we don’t have a new episode of Ignited, we will be having Legacy Pro Beyond, with in-depth analysis, interviews and speculation about all your favorite Legacy Pro performers, hosted by yours truly with a parade of guest hosts and commentators. So tune in, and get ready for Legacy Pro, which I am predicting will set the professional wrestling world on fire!
Applause after Stanford final remarks, him and the Rock sharing a short handshake before Dwayne takes the podium, steal practically beaming.
Dwayne Johnson: Thank you Scott, look forward to your insight. Now before we go today, I wanted to make one more announcement regarding the staff of Legacy Pro. Legacy Pro is a passion project of mine, and I assure you that as long as I am the Chairman of the Board, I will be demanding a level of quality that is unmatched in this business. I expect the best. But I also am also a busy man, and with all of my different interests and responsibilities, I can’t be in charge of day-to-day operations. That is why the board and I came to an agreement that we would have an appointed Commissioner, who’s job would include oversight of the Ignition programming, matchmaking, and of course selecting our championship contenders. And when we put our heads together to determine who would be up to the challenge of helming the greatest wrestling promotion in the world, one name kept coming up and up again and again. Because when you think about the best in the world...well…
A familiar riff cuts off the Rock.
The largest applause yet, mostly due to it being the biggest surprise, as CM Punk dressed in a simple gray plaid suit walks out to look over the crowd. He mouths “wow,” before walking over to shake hands with Johnson. The pair share a short exchange and a laugh before Johnson turns towards the microphone.
Dwayne Johnson: Ladies and gentlemen, the Commissioner of Legacy Pro, Phil Brooks. But I suspect you know him better as CM Punk.
The crowd cheers again as Johnson gives Punk the microphone. Punk for his part laughs, ambling up to the podium and simply running his tongue in his cheek, leaning in and just taking in the moment. After a long few seconds he finally says.
CM Punk: This is weird, right? It’s not just me, this is actually weird. Because guys like me, we might be allowed a chance to carry a company on our backs, to elevate the rest of the "boys" from inside the ring. But we don’t get to run the place...right?
Punk glances over to Johnson, who can only shrug, a gestures that Punk mocks back at him before looking back over the crowd.
CM Punk: So yeah, it’s weird. And it’s not like Dwayne and I haven’t had our own public disagreements. But when I got the call...and the offer...I figured...eh, what the hell, right? This whole industry is weird, so why not tack on yet another strange, unexpected footnote to that long, strange career of mine. So here I am, Commissioner Punk. And in all seriousness, I want you all to know? The guys and gals we got coming in? They’re something else. They’re special. And they’re hungry. That’s what I like the most, because a lot of them haven’t been pushed like this. They don’t get a lot of opportunities like this, to launch a flagship. But now they do. Now I do. I am in the driver's seat of what I am confident will become the #1 wrestling promotion on the planet. And I take that responsibility very seriously, because it's a sport that I have dedicated my life to, and now I get to make it reflect what I think is best. So I do want to say a sincere thank you to Dwayne, and tell you all here...buckle up. Because shit’s about to get wild.
With that, Atreyu kicks back up and Punk waves to the crowd assembled. Journalists start to file off for one-on-one interview opportunities with various members of the Legacy board and staff. The live stream slowly fades to black however, with a simple logo coming up.
Premiering Saturday, October 10