Key Figure Behind AEW's Toni Storm Vs. Mariah May Feud Revealed

The simmering storyline between Mariah May and Toni Storm recently exploded, with May showing her true colours and turning on her mentor, beating Storm to a bloody pulp after winning the Women’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament on the July 10 edition of AEW Dynamite.

The angle has earned rave reviews, and AEW CEO Tony Khan has revealed to Sports Illustrated who he turned to for help structuring the entire storyline:

“My right hand in all of this is RJ [City]. He was the only person in the office who’d seen ‘All About Eve’ and ‘Sunset Boulevard’, and he understood old Hollywood and the old movies. He’s been so valuable and tremendous throughout this process. He has a great aptitude for wrestling, and he was also able to use these movies for inspiration.”

Khan revealed in the same interview that the plan for the Storm/May feud was a long-term one, and that the classic movies were imperative to the presentation of the story:

“I went to Toni Storm and suggested these movies - All About Eve and Sunset Boulevard - because she had that larger-than-life persona like Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard and Bette Davis in All About Eve. That is ‘Timeless’ Toni Storm. She’s that starlet, with that presence - backstage, in the ring, out of the ring - of one of those rare old Hollywood stars. This is the role Toni was born to play, and she is absolutely incredible at it,” said Khan.

Toni Storm will put the AEW Women’s World Championship on the line against Mariah May at AEW All In Wembley Stadium on August 25.