The Protostar, Kyle Fletcher, has had quite an impressive run in All Elite Wrestling. Since joining the Don Callis Family, he’s had an upward trajectory. However, since becoming the “Protostar” in late 2023, that momentum skyrocketed. In 2024, he assembled the elements to become an almost complete package—the spitting image of what one’d think of with his Protostar nickname.
Honestly, he’s become a far cry from that scrappy, athletic, and acrobatic member of the Aussie Open. He’s lightyears beyond the Will Ospreay look-alike in the United Empire. It pains me to say that because he and Mark Davis were the best part of NJPW’s tag team division in the early 2020s. Well, it also pains me to refer to the early 2020s as such. Time is a flat circle.
Not only has he reinvented himself, but he’s also quickly caught up to many of his contemporaries, becoming one of AEW’s top acts. Completely cutting off United Empire leader and friend Will Ospreay, Fletcher ascended to a level that fans can only expect as “elite”. So, where does he go after his loss at AEW All Out against AEW Men’s World Champion Hangman Adam Page?
Kyle Fletcher’s Story So Far
Abandoning everything related to the United Empire, as he joined the Don Callis Family in full, Fletcher’s makeover left him almost unrecognizable. Forsaking emerald for rose quartz, Kyle Fletcher’s image dripped with hot pink. He bore sunglasses tinted and dripping with rosy ornaments, with blindingly salmon-hued trunks and boots. Michigan emo band, Hot Mulligan, supplied Fletcher’s theme song, “Protostar”. There was an aura to Kyle. A visage evoked even if he were not present. Just his name alone brought to mind pink, passion, and athletic excellence. He even shed his hair, unintentionally inviting many comparisons to 2009 Randy Orton.
Fletcher’s denunciation of Will Ospreay didn’t stop at his betrayal, however. The pair had a trilogy to close out 2024, ending in a bloody and gnarly steel cage match at March 2025’s Revolution event. He’d cross paths with Hangman Adam Page in the semi-finals of the Owen Hart Cup that year, which would be revisited later.
The Protostar’s rise took him to an intense rivalry with TNT Champion Adam Cole before tragedy struck. Due to an injury so severe Cole had to vacate the title, Fletcher had to contend with Cole’s friend/rival Daniel Garcia, Sammy Guevara, and Dustin Rhodes at All In in Texas. What seemed to be a decisive one-on-one became an impromptu 4-way he couldn’t prepare for. The Grandson of a Plumber won the title that night for a feel-good moment, but it wouldn’t last long. In a memorable Chicago Street Fight, Fletcher beat Rhodes so badly, he had to have knee surgery in a barn-burner of a match.
Kyle went on to successfully retain his title at AEWxNJPW Forbidden Door against Hiromu Takahashi. Unfortunately, Icarus flew close to the Sun, as he set his sights on Hangman Adam Page.
Parallels Between Kyle Fletcher and Hangman Adam Page
No tournament this time. Fletcher outright targeted the Hangman from August to September 2025 with the Don Callis Family by his side. The young Aussie had the accolades. He had the fans eating out of the palms of his hands. 5-star matches, Most Improved awards, you name it. Scroll through social media before, during, and after his matches, and you’ll see account. As praising his work. Of course, he’d be cocky.
Just like an Anxious Millennial Cowboy once was. Adam Page acknowledged Fletcher’s advances and told him as much. That he himself had the support of fans and friends in his ear. As if to advise Fletcher, Page warned Fletcher that he wasn’t ready. Nothing could prepare him for the morning after without the belt, the morning full of disappointment and regret. The same that sent him spiraling when he lost to Chris Jericho at All Out in 2019.
Only this time, the morality scales were on opposing sides. Page, the veteran, stood as the babyface. The rookie Fletcher challenged as he stood arm in arm with a legion of horribles. Page yet had much to prove; Fletcher already cemented his place, and he didn’t flinch.
The two had a hard-hitting, high-octane bout that closed All Out. They left fans screaming and frothing, all standing. The wax melted from Fletcher’s wings as Page shot him down. With a top rope Deadeye and Buckshot Lariat, Page retained the AEW Men’s World Championship.
Where Does Kyle Fletcher Go From Here?
Just as Page predicted, Fletcher wasn’t ready. He’s damn close, though. The Australian prodigy only needs to shake off his cobwebs, get up, and keep moving. He fought Page on his own merit, gave it all he got, and stared danger in its face. Alone by his will. That’s what’s so exciting about his story going forward. As much as his destiny can be surmised, how he carries on will determine and shape who he is.
After all, he’s a Protostar. This is only his primitive form, and if he were to evolve, he’d need to go beyond. Mold into something new. Someone who forces his opponents to look him in the eyes and convince themselves that he’s more than a man, more than a star. Since his heel turn, Fletcher took every opportunity to improve himself and excel. He’s not content with complacency when his craft depends on him to be so much more.
The Don Callis Family, despite its patriarch’s bold proclamations of grandeur, has its own interpersonal dramas. Kazuchika Okada and Konosuke Takeshita are abrasive towards one another. The introduction of Wardlow already sowed seeds of discontent. The more Callis adds, the more egos will grow, refusing to budge.
Sooner or later, Fletcher will not have room there; sooner or later, Fletcher will need to be a solo star. Only then, by his own merit, he’ll find who he is as a wrestler and only then he’ll find gold.
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