Details On Creative Plans For Keith Lee, Karrion Kross and Others Prior To Release From WWE

As we previously reported, eighteen wrestlers were released from WWE, including Keith Lee, Karrion Kross and others. Fightful Select has more details on the company’s creative plans for several of the wrestlers prior to the decision to cut them from the roster.

Katrina Cortez, from NXT, was originally brought to the main roster in late 2019 as a team with Sin Cara. Sin Cara spoke to Fightful and said that there weren’t any plans for the two other than putting over Andrade and Zelina Vega. Sin Cara then asked for his release after he was informed the character was “dead” and Katrina was sent back to NXT. It’s said there were “never any major plans for her.”

Both Karrion Kross and Keith Lee have suggested recent changes to their characters didn’t come from them, and a source confirmed that Kross’ look and Lee’s “Bearcat” nickname were not their ideas.

WWE wanted to get Scarlett on either RAW or Smackdown as a wrestler, but she was “quickly sidelined.” People in the company tried to get her paired with Kross on the main roster, but that never happened. There were backstage rumors of heat on Kross, but he still had people going to bat for him regarding his booking and character. As previously noted, there were plans for another change to the character. Most within WWE said the booking, not the characters, was the problem.

Mia Yim was drafted but hasn’t wrestled at all this year. There had been “tentative” plans for her on shows before the draft and she quietly switched brands several times.