Karrion Kross, Shinsuke Nakamura Among WWE Stars Receiving Recent Promo Flexibility

WWE appears to be loosening restrictions on promos, according to a recent report.

According to Fightful Select, talent is currently being less scripted by WWE creative, with the recent program between Karrion Kross and Shinsuke Nakamura cited as an example of some of this newfound freedom. The feud between the two former "NXT" Champions culminated in a match earlier this month on "SmackDown," prior to the start of the World Heavyweight Championship tournament.

WWE Creative has been in a seemingly fluid situation since the return of Vince McMahon at the beginning of the year. Creative has been overseen by WWE Chief Content Officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque since McMahon's initial retirement in 2022. However, after McMahon returned in 2023, he has slowly begun to creep into the creative process on occasion. The words of a wrestler's promo not being so tightly scripted is more reflective of Levesque's "NXT," though there have been reports in the past few months of scripts being changed near show time, akin to McMahon's usual creative management style.

Kross is listed on internal documents as one of the top heels on the "SmackDown" brand, which could be one of the reasons Kross has been given such leeway with Nakamura in the program. Before his recent return, Nakamura had been away from WWE television and been specifically "on hold" until this post-WrestleMania period, which saw the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion in training vignettes that put new focus on his striking ability, leading to the recent win over Kross on "SmackDown."