EXCLUSIVE: “Everybody Was Scared”: ‘Leader’ Drew McIntyre Shares Backstage Details on How WWE Stars Struggled During COVID

The COVID situation hit the world hard, and many are still recovering. With everything shut down, businesses, companies, and even sports like pro wrestling took a massive blow. WWE took drastic measures to ensure regular broadcasting of their shows with no fans in the arena. Drew Mclntyre, who took charge during the pandemic as the WWE Champion and as a leader, sheds light on his struggles during those difficult times.

During the lockdown, fans were asked to sit at home, but the WWE could not be shot without fans. Despite the regulations, creative heads found ways to ensure seamless broadcasting of their shows with fans’ involvement through the Thunder Dome. But what toll did it take on the wrestlers? 

Drew McIntyre talks about wrestling without fans

Mclntyre answered plenty of media questions before his match at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad, India for the WWE Superstar Spectacle. Taking a moment to answer questions from EssentiallySports, we asked Mclntyre about his experience during the COVID time. This was when there were no fans in the arena.

On the topic of COVID and not having fans in the arena, Mclntyre said, “Fans are our #1 superstars, they make the WWE what it is, and we’re going to feel that big time in Hyderabad.” Fan excitement has been a major part of pro wrestling. Not only does it elevate the sport, but it also, at times, lets wrestlers decide during a match who is going to be the face and who is going to be the heel.

Mclntyre said, “We were uncertain about the future; hell, everybody was scared.” On March 13, 2020, the first episode of the WWE programming without live fans was SmackDown. The shows were held in the WWE Performance Center with only essential staff in attendance. This format also saw a change in matches due to the dead arena. Wrestlers engaged in narrative storytelling and trash talk during matches. 

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Mclntyre went on to talk about how the main goal of the WWE at the time was to ensure people were safe and that its programming brought some joy to them. Even WrestleMania 36 was shot at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. It was broken into two parts, broadcast on April 4 and 5. 

The issues of fan-less arenas during COVID

When continuing on the topic of working through COVID-19, Mclntyre spoke about the issues they faced. Since the arena was completely silent, the bumps the wrestlers took were much harder to compensate for the lack of sound. In a similar vein, the interviews and promos also felt off as the crowds that cheered were no longer present. Mclntyre said it would be off-putting while doing a promo to hear someone cough in the background as all the fans were sitting at home.

Nevertheless, Mclntyre and others pushed through these difficult times to ensure the regular programming was on for all the die-hard fans to watch.

In conclusion, he talked about what an honor it was to bring happiness to fans during these scary times. In retrospect, the efforts WWE put in to ensure regular broadcasting deserve applause. Mclntyre added that as the champion, he took pride in stepping up his game to ensure fans enjoyed his reign as champion even at times like this. WWE returned to normal fan-filled arenas in May 2021. 

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