Last night’s episode of WWE SmackDown was broadcast under a TV-14 rating for the first time in 12 years. Along with Monday Night Raw, SmackDown has worked under a PG rating since 2008 but declining ratings seemed to have made WWE shift their approach to programming. The image of the TV-14 rating can be seen in the tweet below.
AYOOOOO SMACKDOWN IS TV-14
TV-14 IS BACK
YOU LOVE TO SEE IT#SmackDown pic.twitter.com/NZ1gwiDpZP
— IBeast (@x_Beast17_x) August 15, 2020
Whether this was a one-week trail has yet to be determined. Next week’s episode of the blue-brand show will be broadcasted live, and will take place from the Amway Center in Orlando, which will be the first event outside of WWE’s Performance Center since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared a national emergency back in March.