(Assistant): Mr. and Mrs. Parker…please, Mr. Cheeks us expecting you.
Butch nods to the assistance taking Wisdom by the hand and walks inside. George was on the phone and tilts his head up as they come in, eyes brightening as he sees them. He nods for them to have a seat at the small conference table to the side and mouths “one sec” as he finishes the call. Moments later he hangs up, getting up from his desk with a smile. Butch and Wisdom rise to meet him and they all shake hands.
(George): Butch, Wisdom…please sit down, sit down. It’s great to see you.
Butch and Wisdom sit back down.
(George): Can I get you anything?
Butch and Wisdom shared similar if not the same thought at this moment. No, they didn’t fuking want anything. They were there to address these “concerns raised” by the CBS executives regarding the content of recent episodes of Havoc. Whilst they knew CBS had no control over their company operations, they were also aware that they needed to maintain a good relationship with their network. What they wanted to was to get this trip to the principals office over. Rip the goddamn band-aid off and get the hell out of here. The tension in the room was palpable as they sat across from him and as the meeting began, they were are on edge, unsure of what the outcome will be.
(George): Let’s get right to it then shall we? First let me say we knew coming into this there were going to be some bumps in the road. HWA’s return has been a monumental success for the network. The Reunion Show, had a massively successful audience response, as has the subsequent Havocs. There were over one million new Paramount+ subscriptions following the announcement, but…
(Wisdom): But what?
Wisdom responds with a tinge of annoyance in her voice. She didn’t like this shit, didn’t like being summoned. Butch had been working his ass off as had she, and they had to come listen to some bullshit from folks they never met about “their” company.
(George): …but wrestling fans don’t see the whole picture, and as you might imagine, given this past week’s Havoc, concerns have been raised mirroring those of your company’s past.
(Butch): With all due respect, George, what do you know what wrestling fans see and don’t see? I know the last few weeks have been rocky but come on, this can’t have been the most controversial thing you’ve had air live on network television?
George holds his hands up in a pleading manner, as if to say “wait”…
(George): Butch, to be frank… what I mean is wrestling fans don’t see the full landscape of what you do behind the scenes, the elements involved in the decisions you make. The same can be said here, you yourselves only know part of what happens here. You have no idea it took us 6 months to come to a consensus to even approach you with an offer, and another 6 for us to solidify a deal. All in all, a year in the making. What I’m saying is…the fans set the ratings, and they are loving the product, but CBS has considerations beyond just ratings and there are some who are starting to chime in about our options moving forward.
(Wisdom): What are you saying George, you’re cancelling us?
(George): Let’s not jump to conclusions. I’m saying I’m in your corner here, I knew coming into this that there would be bumps in the road, but Butch…your vision is what sold the executives. If that vision can’t last past a few shows, its gonna going to get tougher, even as president to keep an executive vote off the table to reconsider this deal.
Butch takes a massive deep breath in through his nose. He averts his eyes from George’s and squeezes Wisdom’s hand under the table. Wisdom squeezes his hand back but doesn’t look at him.
(Wisdom): George, look…we appreciate your support, and we’re glad to have you in our corner, and as much as we believe in, invest in, support, promote and drive everything we do towards that vision Butch pitched to you towards what we’ve lived the past years…this is wrestling. Sometimes things get out of control, but we reign it back in. Whoever upstairs doesn’t understand that, doesn’t understand this business, and if they’re going to write us off…you might as well do it now and we’ll cut our losses.
(George): Hold on, I don’t want to paint a picture of doom and gloom, nothing’s happened yet. I called you here to tell you about the conversations being had in our offices. We have no part or say in how you run your company, but as President, if you want to maintain this deal…my suggestion would be to not let things get too out of hand. Give me some time, I’m working on them. There are things in motion behind the scenes that I’m not at liberty to discuss right now…let’s just say both of us might need to trim the fat a little to make this work in the short term. Right now, I need you to ride this wave. It’s not going to be easy, but I believe the two of you can do it.
George leans in as if he’s telling a secret and there are other people listening.
(George): When we have a show that’s not meeting expectations, we don’t keep renewing and running with it. $65 million, that’s what it costs to produce Corden’s show. You want to know what it brought in…$45 million! That’s an unsustainable deficit. This network is about successful programming, successful revenue, viewership, and products that strengthen our image. Butch, you have and have had a vision. We were right here when you told me, that having been stripped from all the spotlight, big arenas and overwhelming production was one of the best things that could have happened back in 2015? Why? Because it allowed you to do what you love with nothing else in the way, to produce wrestling in its purest form. You wanted to maintain that vision coming back, and we believe in it, but people getting feces put in their mouths, buses running folks over, anxiety attacks on live television…that’s not part of your vision…is it? What I’m saying is you might need to reconsider, continuing to run with individuals who are not sustainable to that vision. That’s what the board is going to tell you, that’s what the execs want to hear. They need to know that CBS’s image ad values are protected.
Wisdom sighs, then for the first time looks over to Butch and squeezes his hand again. Butch screws his face up, his brow furrowing and he leans forward.
(Butch): Whoa, whoa, whoa. You’re seriously using my health against me? What? A guy struggling with his mental live on TV is bad for business? I’m sorry that’s such a goddamn inconvenience for you and your suits, George! The incident with Matt and Maniac was not something anyone envisioned happening. We’ve already issued fines for their involvement, Wisdom has handled the legal sides of things and we’ve handled those two for this coming Havoc in Nebraska. If anything else happens at this Havoc that compromises what I pitched to you, I guarantee heads will roll. But you can’t honestly say with a straight face that what happened with me is bad for business?
Butch pushes his chair back and stands up waving his hand with his forefinger extended. He looks like he’s about to say something else but he stops himself, turning his back. Wisdom grabs him subtly by the hand, trying to guide him back to his seat.
(George): Butch, I’m on your side here man, but we’ve got a board of directors that for some of them…see things differently. I need the majority consensus here, and to be honest right now it’s a bit rocky. Look, I don’t envy you for what you inherited, and I don’t think anyone else could have turned that ship around as you have, but you have to realize that given HWA’s history, not everyone was jumping for joy to have it back. I believe in your brand, I believe in you and Wisdom, I’m a huge wrestling fan myself but I need you to be aware of what’s in the mind of some others who do in fact have say in things here. I’m not going to say you’re on the chopping block, but it’s obvious you’re on the watch list. I’m here to support you. For Christ sakes, we helped get the media in line keeping that video form circulating, you know that. I wouldn’t presume to use that against you, but others might, and I need to be mindful…we both need to be mindful of that.
Wisdom gets to her feet in solidarity with Butch, her hands on her hips.
(Wisdom): I’m not going to make any excuses for some of the things that turned sideways. If anyone wants to see that as a bad omen, then I don’t know what to tell them. Like Butch said, we have and are handling these situations and those involved. If someone walked in here with a gun and shot up the place, it’s a big black-eye for CBS in the media, because that’s how people think. They start wondering what’s wrong with that company, but the truth is, it has little to do with its leadership and more about the individual in that very moment who committed the act. We’re dealing with the same thing here George. Do we like it? No! Guys like Maniac thinking he can do what he wants, and push against our goals and policies, Draconis, Fallen, and Legion showing less than favorable character, Bryan Deas going into business for himself…if we need to, if it comes down to someone really crossing the line instead of standing in it…we’ll do what needs to be done.
(George): Look I know you’re both upset, this isn’t how I imagined this meeting going. I just wanted to bring you guys in…tell you the talk around the water cooler, and put some things on your radar because you deserve to know what’s being said. I can’t say it enough that I’m on your side here, I’m all in, and I’ll do whatever I can to help bring HWA back to the status it once had as the doming brand in professional wresting, naysayers be damned, but this is the corporate side of things ladies and gentlemen. It’s a delicate dance at times. How about I get you guys a drink!
George gets up and goes over to the bar in the corner of his office. We hear glasses being set on the counter, and a decanter top opening as he looks back at Butch and Wisdom.
(George): Scotch? Bourbon? Gin? What can I get you?
Wisdom waves her hand indicating that she doesn’t want anything.
(Butch): F*ck it, I need a Scotch after that. Look, I appreciate you’re on our side, George but like Wisdom says, you know how tumultuous a pro wrestling landscape can be. We can run the company the best it’s ever been run but you can’t prepare for the unpredictable, you have to do the best you can with what you have. I mean aside from keeping guard on the entire arena, there’s not much else more we can do to stop things like that from happening other than cutting ties with those who don’t get on board with the vision I pitched to you.
Butch subtly looks like something just dawned on him, but he doesn’t let on. He accepts a glass of Scotch from George and drains it in one swift gulp. They converse a while longer with George, discussing some upcoming programming on the timeline including the beginning plans of their first return ppv. Thirty minutes later and he sees them to the door. Their silent walk to the elevator and back down to the lobby is uncomfortable, almost feeling eyes from the upper floors on themThey head out of CBS offices and down to a car waiting to drive them back over to Santa Monica. She locks her fingers in his hand, seeing the tension in his taut forearms. She grabs a bottle of water taking a few sips, before leaning in close to him.
(Wisdom): We’re not going to let this worry us babe. Some tight ass old farts sitting up in their office can think what they want. I know we’re doing the right thing. They’d be happy replaying old Billy Graham sermons instead of what wrestling fans are enjoying. They can’t deny our ratings whether they like it or not, but I know the numbers alone aren’t everything like George said.
Another sigh escapes Butch’s nose.
(Butch): I’m done f*cking around, babe. Something needs to happen to shift the status quo back in our favour. I’m done with the complete lack of respect for you, for me and the ignorance to how this could affect us. I don’t care if I have to supervise every single match in Nebraska myself, things will be different. I promise.
She doesn’t reply, instead…resting her head up against his as they lean into one another. His resolve was unaltered, if not strengthened by this meeting. There would be order in Nebraska and moving forward. She knew in her heart that nothing was going to stop them from taking HWA back to the top of the mountain to reign supreme again. The car pulls out of the CBS lot as the scene fades to black.
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