Summary

Colby Applegate shared a detailed look at how WWE NXT's writing team builds each week's show, from long creative meetings in midweek to filming backstage material on show day.

Applegate, who announced in March that he had been promoted to writer for NXT, said the process starts on Wednesdays with the team mapping out stories and assembling the script for the following week. The work then continues through Thursday and Friday, with attention also given to future plans and production needs such as props.

He added that Mondays are used for pre-production and another full review of the script before Tuesdays are spent filming backstage segments ahead of NXT airing live on The CW.

How NXT's weekly writing cycle works

According to Applegate, Wednesdays and Thursdays are the heaviest creative days for NXT's writers, with the group spending eight to nine hours going through stories and finishing the script. He said Fridays are used to write individual segments, while the team also looks ahead to future material and coordinates any logistical needs tied to upcoming ideas.

Applegate said Monday functions like a table read, with the script reviewed one more time, recordings checked, and last-minute changes made before Tuesday's filming schedule and that night's live broadcast.

Quote from Colby Applegate

"(The writers) come in on Wednesday and that is our primary creative day where we just go through all our stories and start putting the script together for the following week. We usually spend eight to nine hours doing that. Then we come in on Thursday, kind of do the same thing, finish the script, start looking at future stories, and start planning for the next week. So when we're going to film certain things, or if we need props, we have to let the props team know to order things for us, and then we write our segments and stuff on Fridays, and then Monday we come in and it's kind of our pre-production day to go over the script one more time."

Applegate later went on to say:

"It's like a table read. Then we make sure we record everything, make any last-minute changes, and then Tuesday is show day where we just spend all day filming our backstage segments. Then the show goes live at 8 PM Eastern on the CW, and we do it all over again the next week."

Applegate also stressed that writing for wrestling requires flexibility and a willingness to collaborate.

"Living with the idea that your writing will get changed (is important). It's a team effort. You have a vision for it, but at the end of the day, you have to work with the other writers... and the wrestlers will come up with different lines to say, different things to do. So it is a super collaborative process, and you can't be egotistical about it. (To do this type of writing), you have to be willing to put in the work and make sacrifices, and I feel like that's something that gets said a lot, but I've also seen people who say they want it, but don't put in the work to actually do it... You just have to take it seriously."

What Applegate's comments mean for NXT

Applegate's breakdown makes it clear that NXT depends on constant rewrites and close coordination between creative, talent, and production before the show reaches air. His comments also underline how much of NXT's weekly presentation is shaped by collaboration rather than a locked script, which helps explain why adjustments can continue right up to Tuesday.

Sources

Colby Applegate while speaking with Full Sail University