Shawn Spears has been making the most of his recent television time thanks to the AEW Dynamite empty arena shows caused by the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. According to the former WWE superstar, the empty arena setting has opened things up, allowing less-well known wrestlers to better introduces their characters to fans.
But while the wrestlers are making the most of the opportunity, Spears tells CBR that All Elite Wrestling President Tony Khan is the one who made the call to send them out to play the role of the audience. And the main piece of advice he had for them was simple: go out there and have fun.
This was all that wrestlers like Spears and MJF needed to hear. While the latter recently came out of a massive storyline with Cody Rhodes, he stepped back somewhat from the spotlight after that feud ended. The same thing happened to Spears, who came into AEW with an explosive feud with Rhodes before moving out of the spotlight when the back-and-forth ended.
Thanks to the empty arenas, both Spears and MJF been able to keep their faces front and center in fans' minds. For the first few shows, the two men stood in the audience and bet on matches, which Spears explained as a way to help them connect more with the audience while they weren't wrestling. Since then, Spears has remained in the audience when not in the ring, while MJF has started cutting comic promos at home, faking injury concerns.
However, the two men also have something else in common -- they love to connect with fans on social media, an area MJF has mastered since coming to prominence with the new company. Some fans take it as a badge of honor when they smack talk MJF and he delivers a response, insulting them in every way possible. However, don't tell Spears that MJF is the king of social media.
"When you say MJF is the master, c'mon," Spears said. "He's cut and dry. What you see is what you get. You know, when you look at that guy, he's injured. Yeah, he's a little pompous. He's over the top. He's young. He's a kid. He's got time. All right."
Spears backed up his argument like this: MJF comes out on social media and will insult anyone and everyone. Meanwhile, Spears is a little more pointed when he interacts with fans and fellow wrestlers, as he showed by responding to aRhodes post ranking the Star Wars movies by referring to May the 4th as Nerd Day. He also wished everyone a happy Monday since he wouldn't do a "dumbass Star Wars tweet."
Ultimately, Spears believes the main difference between the two of them is that while MJF is "cut and dry," he tries to remain a little more balanced with fans.
"Social media kind of changed the game for everything across the board, especially in the sporting world," Spears said. "For certain guys that might not get the microphone time or the television time, it's a way to engage with an audience and kind of build a platform as to who you are in this industry, build a persona, or get your persona out there more."
During the coronavirus pandemic, Spears also sees social media as a perfect way for professional wrestlers to reach out and communicate with their fans, many of whom feel isolated and alone right now.
"If they just want to engage, especially during this time, I am more than happy to do so."
AEW Dynamite airs on Wednesday nights at 8/7c on TNT.