Retired professional wrestler Mark Henry has signed with All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as an on-air personality, making him the latest member of the WWE Hall of Fame to join Tony Khan's up-and-coming wrestling promotion.The "World's Strongest Man" made his AEW debut on March 30 at this year's Double or Nothing pay-per-view in Jacksonville, Florida, during which Tony Schiavone announced that Henry had joined the company as an analyst, and would appear on AEW's new weekly television show Rampage, which is slated to premiere on TNT on Aug. 13. Rampage will air on Fridays, acting as a companion to AEW's current weekly show Dynamite, which airs on TNT on Wednesdays.
A powerlifter, Olympic weightlifter and professional strongman, Henry entered the world of pro wrestling at the age of 24, debuting for the WWE (then WWF) in early 1996. The Silsbee, Texas native performed for WWE for over 20 years, picking up the European Championship, the ECW Championship and the World Heavyweight Championship along the way. Henry retired from in-ring competition in 2017 and transitioned into a backstage role. He was subsequently inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2018. His final appearance for the company took place earlier this year during a special "Legends Night" edition of Monday Night Raw in January.
Numerous ex-WWE stars are currently on the AEW roster as either wrestlers, coaches or on-screen personalities, including Co-Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes, as well as Awesome Kong (formerly known as Kharma), Chris Jericho, Christian Cage (formerly Christian), Cash Wheeler (formerly Dash Wilder), Dax Harwood (formerly Scott Dawson), Dustin Rhodes (formerly Goldust), Jake Hager (formerly Jack Swagger), Jon Moxley (formerly Dean Ambrose), Leva Bates, Matt Hardy, Matt Sydal (formerly Evan Bourne), Miro (formerly Rusev), Pac (formerly Neville), Paul Wight (formerly Big Show), Shawn Spears (formerly Tye Dillinger), Taz and Vickie Guerrero.
That being said, Henry is now a member of an even more exclusive club of AEW employees who also happen to be WWE Hall of Famers. Other members of WWE's Hall of Fame who are currently signed to AEW include legendary WCW wrestler Sting, who was inducted in 2016; retired wrestler/manager Jake Roberts, who was inducted in 2014; retired wrestler/manager/coach Arn Anderson, who was inducted as a member of the Four Horsemen in 2012; and Monty Kip Sopp (aka Billy Gunn), who was inducted as a member of D-Generation X in 2019.