Is WWE hotter now than during the Attitude era?

[ragecutter]

I'm watching Raw now, and the crowd is hotter than a supernova, so I ask: are they hotter now than they were during the late 90s?

[Fade]

As hot as they’ve been since the AE. Possibly more profitable/successful?? I’m not a math major

But I don’t think it can be as hot as it was then. Different time, different culture. It was bananas.

[UN PLOMBIER NIGHTMARE #blm]

oh no, not even in the slightest. the only WWE crowd similar to back then in the last few years was Backlash in PR

[RGT 85]

I'd put it behind Golden Era and Attitude Era. But ahead of what we have seen in the last decade.

[LiamMcDuggle]

Jan 1, 2024 20:38:11 GMT -5 ragecutter said:

I'm watching Raw now, and the crowd is hotter than a supernova, so I ask: are they hotter now than they were during the late 90s?

It's nearly impossible for anything to be as popular as it was in the 90's. Pop culture in the 90's was more general & everyone watched the same 8-9 shows on TV. 

In the 2020's, everyone is able to bury themselves in their niche, so they get exposed to less media overall. 

I will say, WWE is more generally accepted in the commercial mainstead now. People would still regularly bring up how wrestling is "fake" on TV, not really understanding the medium.

[Clash, Never a Meter Maid]

It’s not a “fad” yet like Rock n Wrestling and later Attitude, but keep in mind many parts of the mainstream were still shitting hard on both WWE and wrestling as a whole even when it was generating massive revenue.

[ghost]

Hottest since the Attitude Era, yes. I wouldn’t put it above AE or the Hulkamania peak but business wise and mainstream wise this is the hottest they have been in 2 decades. The revenue streams today are a lot different than the 80s and 90s so hard to make a fair comparison there.

[ben:friendship frog]

Nowhere near, business is great but I don't think they'll ever get to that household name status again, and that's fine. What they have now is far more sustainable long term.

[Renslayer]

Not as big, but more mainstream acceptance if that makes sense

[mcstoklasa]

No.

[Stu]

Tomko, Ambrose, Lashley

[The Foreigner™: OffSZN]

Jan 1, 2024 21:15:00 GMT -5 Renslayer said:

Not as big, but more mainstream acceptance if that makes sense

Good way to put it. These days it's more "haha hey it's that wrestler from the meme" than "wrestling is fake/stupid" from non-fans.

[Baldobomb-22-OH-MAN!!!]

Gods no. My normie friends and family knew who Steve Austin, The Rock Mick Foley etc were. None of them have a clue who Roman Reigns or Seth Rollins are, nor do they care.

[chazraps]

Absolutely not. Not at all. WWE may be more mainstream than it's been since 2003 or so, but no it's not *the in thing* right now like it was in the Attitude Era. It's not inescapable in pop culture. That space is presently/most recently occupied by Taylor Swift, 'Barbie' and the like. WWE isn't on that level at this point and time. It *could* get there, and it's on the rise, but as of January 1, 2024 it's not close.

[msc]

Doctor Who is not getting the ratings it got in the seventies or even during the original David Tennant run because TV watching has changed as to be a different country. Yet with access online across the world vastly increased and more cult respectability it's arguably huger than it's ever been. It's also easier to find people who watch, and more adverts for it.

Swap Dr Who for WWE and you have my view on the matter.

[Urn Anderson]

I don’t even think a “no” even comes close to covering it.

WWF during the Attitude era was, without exaggeration, every bit as ingrained in pop culture as Taylor Swift is now or the MCU was at its prime. You couldn’t go anywhere, pick up a magazine, or turn on a TV without hearing about it.

Media wasn’t segmented like it is now, so instead of thousands of different interests you could pursue while interacting with people around the world about them, there was a handful of things that would be INSANELY popular for a couple of years before burning out.

There might be hot crowds AT the wrestling shows, but big box retail stores don’t have dedicated wrestling sections and you don’t see kiosks popping up in every mall that just sell bootleg wrestling shirts.

There was a time when you couldn’t go ANYWHERE without seeing at least one person wearing an Austin 3:16 or nWo shirt. It’s nearly impossible to describe just how big it was then.

[raymondo316]

Not even close

Wrestling was stupidly popular in the 90s

[Xxcjb01xX [PIECE OF: SH-]]

No, and it likely never will be again

This has been a great crowd though, and great crowds can exist in WWE, AEW, and even smaller crowds in the right places for promotions.

[Fade]

Jan 1, 2024 22:22:48 GMT -5 Urn Anderson said:

I don’t even think a “no” even comes close to covering it.

WWF during the Attitude era was, without exaggeration, every bit as ingrained in pop culture as Taylor Swift is now or the MCU was at its prime. You couldn’t go anywhere, pick up a magazine, or turn on a TV without hearing about it.

Media wasn’t segmented like it is now, so instead of thousands of different interests you could pursue while interacting with people around the world about them, there was a handful of things that would be INSANELY popular for a couple of years before burning out.

There might be hot crowds AT the wrestling shows, but big box retail stores don’t have dedicated wrestling sections and you don’t see kiosks popping up in every mall that just sell bootleg wrestling shirts.

There was a time when you couldn’t go ANYWHERE without seeing at least one person wearing an Austin 3:16 or nWo shirt. It’s nearly impossible to describe just how big it was then.

Kids were getting suspended nationwide for crotch chopping!

I almost was one of them!

[fw91]

No, and it’s probably not even on par with ruthless agression. But it is probably the hottest it’s been since the start of the 2010’s.