Gangrel believes Paul “Triple H” Levesque may have been responsible for preventing a planned Brood reunion at WrestleMania 39.
Speaking with Chris Van Vliet on Insight (see video below), the wrestling veteran reflected on the long-rumored plans to reunite with Edge (now Adam Copeland) during WrestleMania 39. While many fans speculated Vince McMahon was behind the decision to scrap the appearance, Gangrel said he believes Triple H may have been the one who pulled the plug.
“I’m not sure, but I think maybe it might have been Hunter. Some people said Vince, but I think it might have been Hunter. Somebody kiboshed it. So when that didn’t go down, he left the next year to AEW. Then he wanted to make sure that he’s a guy that wants to have his way. Don’t tell him no on something, he’s gonna figure it out. So in AEW, he had me come back and come up to the ring and stuff like that.”
When asked how close the reunion actually came to happening, Gangrel said Copeland did everything he could to make it a reality, even if WWE ultimately wasn’t on board.
“In Edge’s mind, yes, he was trying hard. But in their minds, no, I don’t think so.”
Van Vliet also referenced a previous interview with Copeland in which the WWE Hall of Famer claimed the company felt fans might not remember Gangrel. Gangrel acknowledged that explanation but suggested there was more going on behind the scenes.
“That’s what they said, that’s what he said. But I think there’s a little bit more to it. I don’t know what it is, but I think it was a bit more like it’s weird too, because I was just speaking of the name, you know, the nostalgia deals they have. And so I went through that. I’m not going to mention what the person in the office is going through, but it was all lined up. It was right down to the final things and then on the, when last their end should be signed. They come through, they came to me and said ‘Do you have a letter saying from White Wolf that you can use the name, that they relinquish the name to you?’ I go ‘You have lawyers after lawyers.’ They clearly could see that I have the trademark in the register, all that stuff. And like ‘No, you don’t have a letter.’”
Gangrel added that after that exchange, communication simply stopped. While he admitted a WWE return would still appeal to him, he said he’s remained plenty busy without it.
“And then I never heard back from him again. So it’s something weird. It’s something a little bit more to it. But at this point, I’ve motored on and found my own thing for so long that it would be great to go back in some kind of form or fashion and do something that of course, that would be awesome. And I’m sure the money’s great and, you know, and it gives you longevity to be on that powerful TV. But at the same time, I’ve been busier than I’ve ever been busy.”
Gangrel also credited Copeland for making sure he still got the opportunity to revisit their on-screen association after Copeland joined AEW, saying the former AEW star personally pushed for his appearances.
“That’s just Adam. He wanted it, him and he, I think he talked to the House of Black and they thought it would be cool too. He had a lot of creative control there. He orchestrated all that from all that together.”
