Ric Flair once again let some juicy info slip out when speaking on his podcast, but this latest instance had nothing to do with Hulk Hogan's health or a feud with a top WWE superstar. The wrestling legend has now revealed that he might be coming back to TV in the near future, though not necessarily via the wrestling ring, as he claims Netflix and more are interested in teaming up on a new show featuring the significant others of WWE and AEW superstars that should appeal to fans of the Real Housewives shows and similar fare.
Flair talked about the potential new series on his To Be The Man podcast with Conrad Thompson. The wrestler prefaced the statement by saying he hoped he wasn't "breaking news," but that Netflix and Fox were among interested parties in potentially picking up a reality series he's a part of that follows the wives of WWE and AEW superstars. And it sounds like they've already put together some footage to show off.
Flair mentioned the project would invovle his wife, Wendy Barlow, as well as the wives of WWE superstars Randy Orton and Kurt Angle, Kim Orton and Giovanna Yannotti, respectively. AEW superstar Jack Hager's wife, Catalina White, was also mentioned as a participant, while Jeff Jarrett's wife, whom Flair referred to as "Karen Angle" due to her former marriage to the Olympian, may or may not be involved. But it looks like the footage has been seen and shown, and here's all Ric Flair had to say about it:
Fox and Netflix are looking at picking up The Housewives of Wrestling. She saw the reel yesterday, and it's Randy's wife, it's Kurt's wife, it's Wendy, and it's Jake Hager's wife. I don't think Karen Angle's in it, I'm not sure. Karen would be great at that, though, God. But the reel came out so good. They're looking at it.
According to Ric Flair, this wrestling reality show would follow all of the aforementioned women, but it's obviously possible-going-on-likely that all of their pro-wrestler hubbies would also pop up. Not to mention their children, depending on what the scope of the show is. It seems as though everyone mentioned would be the core lineup if the show went to series, though the lineup of participants could always change if Netflix, Fox, or any other studio would order it to series and want to make alterations.
Right now, there's no official word on whether or not this project will get picked up by Netflix, Fox, or any other interested party. It's fair to say that there is an audience that enjoys the Real Housewives franchise, however, as well as an audience that enjoys wrestling reality shows, with Netflix now fully engulfed in cranking out unscripted content. It only seems natural to blend these elements together, even if it lands somewhere else.
Nikki and Brie Bella have proven wrestling reality shows work with their prolonged reality television careers on Total Bellas and other shows, and USA Network still continues to air Miz & Mrs. The WWE has helped produce these shows and will likely continue to do so as long as there's an audience that will tune in and continue to watch it.
With that being said, it doesn't appear as though the project Ric Flair and his wife are involved in has any affiliation with the WWE or the AEW proper, or else it likely wouldn't involve cross-branding in such a way. It also speaks to why Netflix and Fox are reportedly involved instead of an NBCU platform (where WWE is licensed) or a Warner Bros. Discovery platform (which is tied to AEW). NBCU also has Bravo's Real Housewives franchise under its umbrella, so this would be somewhat competitive programming in more than one way.
Should this "Housewives of Wrestling" project get a series order, one can only imagine how it may differ from other Housewives shows on the market. So many wrestling stories are centered around the wild things that happen to wrestlers while they're traveling on the road or flying in a plane. We don't hear a ton about their wives or the families that remain at home or behind the scenes, so this could be a great peek behind the curtain at the fun and stress that they all endure. And if it ends up being a parody like Kevin Hart's Real Husbands of Hollywood, that'd be fun, too.
Wrestling fans will no doubt be using their Peacock Premium subscriptions to stream the WWE's Elimination Chamber on Saturday, February 18th. Tune in for what should be a great pay-per-view, and keep an ear out for any "housewives" chatter relating to WWE and AEW superstars.
