Tony Khan Says He's Taken Tighter Hold Of AEW Creative Heading Into Revolution

Tony Khan is the head creative figure in AEW, and has been since the company was founded in 2019. However, Khan has stepped back at times and offered more creative freedom within the promotion. Speaking on yesterday's media call, Khan harkened back to the lead-up to AEW Revolution 2020, when the CEO took more control over what was being presented on TV, and indicated that he's taken similar steps in 2025.

"I have really pushed back on a lot of stuff in recent months, where a large percentage of what you're seeing is being handed in by me," Khan said. "That is the exact same thing that I did five years ago and it worked really, really damn well. And I realized that's probably what I should do going into this Revolution."

It was reported back in January that Khan had once again gotten "more in the weeds creatively" as head of AEW, coinciding with the fan reaction to the shows becoming more positive. On the media call, Khan stated that he's had to learn to stand strong when he disagrees with the quality of an idea or creative pitch.

"Most of AEW's about collaboration and that's really one of the things that makes AEW stand out," Khan continued. "There's been times where I've been too collaborative and just need to push back. And I think in this past couple months, ... you saw that."

Khan did not get into the specific details of AEW's current creative process, but he did credit December's Continental Classic tournament for helping turn the company's momentum around on TV. For Khan, the goal now is to get the quality of their weekly TV up to the same level as AEW's pay-per-views, which the CEO believes reached new heights in 2024.