Summary

Chris Jericho's surprise appearance on the April 1 edition of AEW Dynamite may have come with a bigger development behind the scenes. A new report says the belief backstage at the show was that Jericho had come to terms with AEW on a new contract.

The return itself was already a major moment for the company after Jericho had been away from AEW television for a year. His on-screen comeback in Winnipeg was covered in our report on Jericho's Dynamite return, and this latest update points to that appearance being more than a one-night surprise.

Backstage details from Dynamite

The report stated that Jericho was not backstage until just before AEW went on the air. He was reportedly driven directly into the venue roughly two minutes before the broadcast began, then went straight to the gorilla position for his entrance.

After the segment, Jericho was said to have filmed additional material for the company, taken part in a photo shoot, and made his way around backstage to introduce himself to talent he did not know.

Quote from Mike Johnson

"Jericho was not present backstage at AEW until right before Dynamite went on the air. We are told Jericho was driven right into the venue about two minutes before AEW began broadcasting and went right to the gorilla position for his ring entrance. Jericho filmed additional content for the company after he returned from the ring and took part in a photo shoot. Jericho made the rounds backstage and introduced himself to talents he didn't know."

What Jericho's status could mean for AEW

Jericho agreeing to stay with AEW would keep one of the promotion's most established names in the mix as Dynamite moves forward from his return. It also gives AEW flexibility to build on the comeback immediately, especially after earlier reporting around why Jericho ultimately stayed with AEW instead of heading to WWE.

That does not confirm a specific storyline yet, but the reported backstage activity, the extra content filming, and the photo shoot all suggest AEW was preparing for more than a brief hometown appearance.

Sources

As reported by NoDQ.