AEW’s Renee Paquette Talks Onscreen Interactions With Husband Jon Moxley, Opponents

The marriage between Jon Moxley and Renee Paquette has been no secret, with the couple acknowledging their relationship whether when they were working with WWE or now AEW. As a result, their marriage has sometimes been incorporated into storylines, such as Moxley’s rivalry with “Hangman” Adam Page and the feud between Moxley’s Blackpool Combat Club stable and his close friend, AEW Continental Crown Champion Eddie Kingston, both of which took place earlier this year.

In an interview with “POST Wrestling,” Paquette was asked how she, as a backstage interviewer, approaches her onscreen interactions with  Moxley and his rivals, particularly in regards to acknowledging their relationship.

“Those are things I think about as a broadcaster,” Paquette said. “That’s never something him and I speak about. But there’s definitely moments with, like, ‘Hangman’ for example. I’ve had moments with ‘Hangman,’ where ‘Hangman’ was doing a program with Jon, when I had to do some stuff with him on camera, and he’s, you know, mentioning Jon or throwing a dagger my way. He did it not even that long ago, when we were doing a contract signing between him and Swerve when he kind of still threw something my way. I’m like ‘Buddy, this is not my problem! You guys worry about your shit, I’ll do my thing.’ 

“So that stuff is going to come up every now and then. I think…you never want to like lean on it too much. I think you can acknowledge it and have a moment, but I will always, if even if I acknowledge something, I still go ‘I’m a doing a job. I’m being a journalist here. I’m not going to oversell something or overstate something to go ‘Who’s talking about my husband? How dare he!'”

RENEE PAQUETTE NAMES RECENT ‘DISAPPOINTING’ AEW DECISION

AEW interviewer Renee Paquette has named a recent booking decision in the company that she thought was ‘disappointing’.

Saraya captured the AEW Women’s World Championship back at AEW All In at Wembley Stadium in August in her home country.

However, Saraya’s reign with the title was short lived, dropping it back to Hikaru Shida on AEW Dynamite Title Tuesday on October 10.

Speaking with Women’s Wrestling Talk with TK Trinidad, AEW interviewer Renee Paquette discussed Saraya’s run, saying that her losing the title was ‘disappointing’.

She said:

“I mean, for sure, disappointing. I mean, you look at somebody like Saraya and what she brings to AEW, what she brings to that women’s division. And I think she kind of finding her footing again as well, after, you know, not wrestling for five-plus years. So for her to come back from this injury, thinking she was never gonna wrestle again, thinking she was fully retired, boots hung up to now coming back into this world and trying to figure it all out again. It’s been really cool to see her get into her groove, and I think are having that championship belt and being able to have a different run, I would have loved to have seen that I would have loved to have seen her be able to defend that title more and have some more of those matches and have more of those opportunities.

“Obviously, Shida is fantastic. We have so many great women. But yeah, Raya is my girl and I think that she just brings a certain cache to women’s wrestling. She really is that woman that… she didn’t single handedly but she was a big part of changing the way that we look at women’s wrestling and changing the mold of what female wrestlers are. I think that we all need to continue to slap a little respect on that woman’s name. She’s a badass.”

Saraya has been teaming up with Ruby Soho as the Outcasts on AEW television recently amid an ongoing love story between Ruby and Angelo Parker.

Tony Khan DELIGHTED With This AEW Newcomer’s Impact

Tony Khan is delighted with what Renee Paquette is already bringing to the table in All Elite Wrestling.

The AEW founder and CEO said as much of the latest addition to his broadcast team in an interview with Sports Illustrated last week. Speaking with Justin Barrasso, Khan stated that while Paquette was new to AEW, she was a familiar face, referencing her prominence in the wrestling community. Claiming Renee “brings amazing presence” to company television, Khan noted the value of having her around.

Said Khan:

“Renee is new to AEW, but she’s a very familiar face. Working with her is such a great pleasure. She’s a consummate professional and brings so much knowledge and experience to our production backstage, and she’s brought her amazing presence to AEW TV. We’re very excited to have her, and this week she’s doing a sitdown interview. Her brain is so valuable for us to have backstage producing the shows.”

Paquette debuted for AEW on its 12 October episode of Dynamite, working a familiar role as a presenter and interviewer. This came following speculation of her heading to Khan’s company stemming from a report stating WWE personnel believed she was heading to AEW. WWE had previously contacted the Canadian over a potential return to the promotion she was with from 2012 to 2020, doing so as part of a reshuffle of its own broadcast teams.

Post-WWE, Paquette started a hugely successful podcast, The Sessions, released a cookbook, and welcomed her and husband Jon Moxley’s first child, Nora Murphy Good, into the world.

Cathy Kelley Seemingly Comments On Comparisons To Renee Paquette

In the past week, fans have seen two of the more beloved backstage interviewers return to wrestling, with Cathy Kelley rejoining WWE as part of the “WWE Raw” broadcasting team, while Renee Paquette joined AEW last night on “AEW Dynamite.” What should be cause for happiness, however, has in some circles descended into debate over whether Kelley or Paquette is better, and which company made out better with their signing.

Kelley, for her part, is having none of that. In a tweet shortly after Paquette’s debut on “Dynamite” last night, Kelley had a message for fans trying to make things a competition between her and Paquette. 

“Imagine comparing women instead of celebrating more female voices in wrestling,” Kelley tweeted.

While Paquette was obviously busy last night, she appeared to echo Kelley’s sentiments, taking to Twitter earlier this morning to post a simple pointing tweet towards what Kelley was saying.

Kelley began her career with WWE back in 2016 and would work there for four years as a backstage interviewer and personality before departing the company in 2020. It was announced last week that Kelley would return as part of WWE’s overhaul of their broadcast team. Paquette, meanwhile, joined WWE in 2012 and remained there until August 2020. She has since devoted time to her podcast, “The Sessions with Renee Paquette,” various other projects, and starting a family with her husband, AEW World Champion Jon Moxley. Rumors Paquette could be joining AEW surfaced last weekend shortly after reports emerged that WWE was also looking to sign her. She was officially announced as “All Elite” an hour before “Dynamite” aired in her hometown of Toronto, Canada, last night.

Renee Paquette Signs With AEW

Renee Paquette is #AllElite.

The former WWE host, commentator and broadcaster made her All Elite Wrestling debut on last night’s edition of Dynamite, opening up the show to a rapturous ovation from her hometown natives in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Having soaked in the rapturous applause for her arrival, she introduced Christian Cage for an interview ahead of the evening’s opener between his charge Luchasaurus and arch nemesis ‘Jungle Boy’ Jack Perry. She later featured as backstage interviewer for match set-up segments featuring Nyla Rose and Anna Jay and Matt Hardy/Private Party and The Andrade Family Office.

Paquette’s signing comes just over two years after she concluded her last full-time wrestling gig as the premiere face of WWE’s broadcast output following SummerSlam 2000. At various points during her eight years with the company, she served as host of all wrap-around and shoulder programming and multiple WWE Network projects, commentator on Monday Night Raw, SmackDown, pay-per-views and NXT and chief backstage personality on all major shows.

Since then, she’s turned her talents to podcasting and writing, finding success in brand new fields with ‘The Sessions’ and her cookbook ‘Messy In The Kitchen’ respectively. Outside – but not entirely – of the industry, she’s married to current AEW Champion Jon Moxley and gave birth to their first child Nora in June 2021.

Renee Paquette Rumored To Be Signing With AEW

Renee Paquette might join her husband, AEW World Champion Jon Moxley in All Elite Wrestling, according to a new report from Fightful Select.

Fightful was reportedly told by several WWE sources that it’s believed that Paquette is headed to AEW. Fightful reached out to Paquette and AEW, but they have yet to confirm the move.

 It was also noted in the report that GiveMeSport’s Louis Dangoor heard that WWE had reached out to Paquette about returning to the company.

The former WWE “Raw” commentator and the backstage interviewer was with WWE for eight years before leaving in August 2020. Paquette was also the host of “WWE Backstage,” which aired on FS1.

Since leaving WWE, Paquette published the cookbook “Messy In The Kitchen: My Guide to Eating Deliciously, Hosting Fabulously and Sipping Copiously” and created her own podcast “The Sessions with Renee Paquette.”

She also worked with UFC and former Strikeforce star Miesha Tate for the show, “Throwing Down With Renee & Miesha.” It was available on Sirius XM Fight Nation. As noted earlier this week, Paquette has a new series with the Cincinnati Bengals. The series is called ” Renée All Dey.”

It was first reported on October 7 that Moxley signed a five-year extension with AEW. He is set to not only wrestle for the company but will be a coach and mentor. Paquette had commented on her husband’s new contract on Friday night via Twitter. 

“So proud of Jon! Just casually watching him carve out his own legacy in real time,” tweeted Paquette.

Renee Paquette Working With NFL Team

Former WWE announcer and interviewer Renee Paquette has a new gig, and it’s with an NFL football team.

The Cincinnati Bengals announced Thursday afternoon that a new series with Paquette is coming soon.

The NFL team tweeted a clip from the upcoming series and wrote, “Introducing a new series with @ReneePaquette, Renée All Dey. Full interview coming soon.”

Paquette reacted to the news, tweeting, “So freaking psyched to join the @Bengals and have my own series with them! Renée All Dey coming soon!”

 Paquette had been with WWE for eight years before leaving in August 2020. During her time with the company, she made history in 2018 by becoming the first full-time female commentator. Since leaving the company, the former “WWE Backstage” host has been keeping busy with her own podcast, “The Sessions with Renee Paquette.” The podcast has been around since November 2020 and her first guest was her husband, current AEW World Champion Jon Moxley.

For her podcast, Paquette has interviewed several notable people such as Fox Sports’ Erin Andrews, WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Page, guitarist Nita Strauss, Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor, “Cobra Kai” actor Martin Kove, and NBA legend Charles Barkley. 

Paquette also worked with former UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Miesha Tate on the Sirius XM show “Throwing Down With Renee & Miesha” and released her first cookbook “Messy In The Kitchen: My Guide to Eating Deliciously, Hosting Fabulously and Sipping Copiously.” The book was published in May 2021 through Permuted Press, which was also the publisher of Moxley’s autobiography, “Mox.”

Renee Paquette Defends WWE Performer She Feels Fans Have Crapped On For Years

Michael Cole has been with WWE for about 25 years, acting in different roles such as a backstage interviewer, onscreen commentator (both as a face and a heel), backstage producer, and is even undefeated at WrestleMania. However, WWE fans haven’t always had praise for Cole, complaining about him on commentary.

“Michael Cole doing his sh*t on commentary and being just as good as he actually is,” former WWE interviewer Renee Paquette said on “The Sessions with Renee Paquette.” “People have literally crapped on [Michael Cole] for years … Shut up. You guys don’t even know how good he is … That dude is in a pressure cooker every single show and he takes the brunt of it. Now, to see him like, actually just show his talent and get to like, show his love of professional wrestling and the fact that he’s been in the business for 25-plus years and the depth of knowledge he has of professional wrestling, it’s awesome. It makes me really happy to see him get to breathe and do his thing.”

Paquette has done commentary alongside Cole before, as she became the first full-time female commentator in company history in 2018. Cole has been the voice of “Raw” and is currently on the “SmackDown” commentary team alongside Pat McAfee, who wrestles once and a while, most recently at SummerSlam. Cole has stated that McAfee has helped bring back a passion that he had been lacking. Now with Vince McMahon gone following his scandalous retirement, Cole does not have him in his ear anymore yelling at him while he is doing commentary.

Ex-WWE Announcer “Open” To Working With AEW

Former WWE backstage interviewer and commentator Renee Paquette has said she’d be “open” to working with AEW soon.

However, Paquette told NBC Sports that she ideally wouldn’t return to pro wrestling TV as a backstage announcer. She’s been there, done that, and is more interested in trying out something that ties in with her ‘Sessions’ podcast.

Explaining, Renee said a gig like this might include “some real great personality profiles” that’d help develop characters for Dynamite, Rampage and AEW pay-per-view. This is something Paquette dabbled with in WWE before leaving in 2020 – the company produced several sit-downs with stars like Bobby Lashley, Paul Heyman and more.

Renee is dead set against doing more commentary too. She tried that on for size in WWE, but didn’t really take to her role as a colour analyst behind the desk. The whole experience left Paquette cold, and she wouldn’t be up for trying it again in AEW.

She told the site that it’d be important to “find that sweet spot”, because doing more of the same old stuff she was doing for years elsewhere doesn’t sound too appealing.

Renee Paquette Is “Torn” Over Her 2021 Male Wrestler Of The Year Pick

In an appearance at the Sportskeeda Wrestling Awards, Renee Paquette was asked to name who she thought was the male Wrestler of the Year for 2021.

Renee Paquette named both AEW star Bryan Danielson and WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns as the two best candidates before ultimately choosing Danielson. She explained it was due to both his wrestling and that the Bryan Danielson we’re seeing now is the best version of him.

“I’m torn between Roman Reigns and Bryan Danielson,” Paquette said. “I think what Roman has been able to do in terms of interest in that big, blockbuster name, you want to see what he’s going to do, I like character growth and development. Roman Reigns has been incredible to watch. Whoever he happens to be in a storyline with, I think he’s been so cool to watch and you can really feel him as sort of the standard-bearer pillar of WWE. He is that guy.

“And I know we’ve been told he’s that guy for a long time, but he is that guy right now. But now on the other side, you’ve got somebody like Bryan Danielson and I think when you’re talking professional wrestling, and not to take away the entertainment side of things, he’s fantastic at that as well, but when you’re talking just professional wrestling alone, he is the guy that everybody else looks to for inspiration.

“He’s a guy they look to see how holds are done, the different moves that he’s doing. And the fact that he showed up in AEW, that was another one that really blew people’s minds. I think everyone was like ‘is this happening? I this actually going to happen? We think it’s going to happen, but we’re not sure if it’s actually going to happen.’

“So the fact that it did, and we get to see Bryan Danielson, the best version of him. You know, I think from all the things he’s been able to learn throughout his career from the independent scene to working for WWE and now being back. Taking all of those tools and just getting to be the best version of himself, like, we are so lucky that we get to watch this and witness this and be a part of this. The matches that him and Hangman have been able to have together were insane. So male wrestler of the year, I’m gonna give it to Bryan Danielson.”

As for who Renee Paquette thought was the best babyface in 2021, she gave the nod to close friend and former WWE Champion Big E. Praising him as both a performer and a person, Paquette stated that it was almost impossible for anyone to dislike Big E.

“Big E all day, every day,” Paquette said. “That’s my guy. Big E with his championship run was incredible. He’s also just an exceptional human being. He’s an exceptional human being, he’s an exceptional professional wrestler. I thought he was an absolutely outstanding champion. I loved him at the tippy top of that company.

“I think that that’s exactly where he belongs. In terms of like a big man that can move, that’s oddly flexible, he’s so great. He’s so entertaining, he’s so charming, he’s just that guy that everybody roots for. Nobody goes ‘ah, Big E is not really for me. I’m not a Big E guy.’ Nobody says that. Literally, those words don’t exist.”