Pat McAfee Originally Turned Down Being Unveiled As Randy Orton's Mystery Caller Ahead Of WWE WrestleMania 42

Pat McAfee originally turned down the angle which saw him return to WWE TV on the April 3 episode of Friday Night SmackDown and be unveiled as Randy Orton's mystery caller.

Dave Meltzer reported on Wrestling Observer Radio that McAfee was the "first choice" to align with Randy Orton, and the response within WWE was one of unhappiness.

"That's where it came from. They wanted celebrity involvement. Originally from what I was told, Pat McAfee was the choice and he turned it down. Then, they were scrambling to get somebody else in the spot, and then, obviously, they were able to make a deal with him. So he did it and he was there. This was not a WWE creative move. This was not a Paul Levesque move. It came over their heads and there's a lot of people not happy about it at all. One person told me it was the single most counterproductive thing the company has done in a long time, but there you go," Meltzer said.

McAfee's return saw him align with Randy Orton and turn on Cody Rhodes, laying out the Undisputed WWE Champion with a punt kick to the nether regions. McAfee then cut a rambling promo about Randy Orton being great and poor WrestleMania 42 ticket sales, during which he presented a warped view of WWE TV as McAfee believes there are often 45-minute matches on the company's programming.

The decision to insert McAfee into the Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton feud reportedly came directly from TKO CEO Ari Emanuel, who is also McAfee's agent, with reports noting it was an attempt to boost WrestleMania ticket sales and increase synergy between WWE and ESPN. McAfee's return resulted in WWE creative telling Cody Rhodes to cut a promo later in the show and to "shoot from the hip" against TKO.