Backstage Update On Malakai Black's AEW Status
Malakai Black's AEW status has been a hot topic of speculation in recent days, with reports suggesting Black may be done with the company. While AEW President Tony Khan had previously stated Black was signed through 2027, others have suggested his deal is already up, or may be up soon. According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer, the feeling in the AEW locker room is that "nobody expects him back."
"The word backstage was that he was gone, although in trying to confirm it, nobody would say anything," Meltzer said. He also noted that WWE has expressed interest internally in bringing Black back into the fold.
For discerning viewers, there have been subtle clues on AEW programming hinting that Black is indeed done. Though she had been previously aligned with House of Black, Julia Hart recently returned from injury with no mention of the stable. Buddy Matthews, who was in action against Will Ospreay this past Wednesday on the January 8 AEW Dynamite, was still billed as being part of the group, but Ospreay cut a post-match promo telling Matthews that both he and fellow House of Black member Brody King "don't need to be following no leader at all" and that they were good enough to branch out on their own.
Black's last AEW match came at Full Gear, where he and King competed in an AEW World Tag Team Championship four-way match, ultimately won by Private Party, but it was his match against Adam Cole on the November 6 Dynamite where rumors of his departure first started heating up. At the close of the contest, Black sat cross-legged in the middle of the ring and willingly accepted Cole's finisher, and afterward uncharacteristically hugged Cole instead of shaking his hand.
