The wrestling community was a-buzz – and in many circles, a-gasp – when it was announced today that WWE Legend The Undertaker was going to be a guest at this year’s Starrcast II, the wrestling podcast convention held in Las Vegas the same weekend as All Elite Wrestling‘s kickoff PPV, Double or Nothing. The four-day convention runs from May 23 through May 26, with tickets going on sale on Friday, February 15 at 12pm EST.
While the first Starrcast occurred August 28 to September 2, 2018, in conjunction with Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks‘ first foray into the PPV business, the hugely successful All In event, and the sequel is set for AEW’s Double of Nothing weekend, Starrcast is not financially tied to AEW. It’s actually the brainchild of star podcaster Conrad Thompson, best known for co-hosting Something to Wrestle With alongside Bruce Pritchard and 83 Weeks with Eric Bischoff. When recently interviewed by Wrestling Inc. about his connection to AEW, Thompson denied any financial ties to the company or it’s owner Tony Khan. “Oh no, absolutely not,” Thompson stated. “Tony [Khan’s] just my friend…No, I don’t work there and there’s lots of people saying, ‘Oh, Starrcast is an AEW event.’ No, we’re featuring a ton of AEW talent, but Starrcast is owned by me and it’s an independent thing. There will be a ton of wrestlers from other companies there….It’s the exact same as the first [Starrcast]. It’s sort of the official unofficial – if that makes any sense.”
The Undertaker’s involvement marks a rare non-WWE booking for the Deadman, and the first wrestling related one. It comes weeks after a rumor started that Taker had erased all mention of the WWE on his Twitter (SPOILER: it wasn’t true). And while some are already jumping to conclusions that this must mean Mark Calloway is heading to AEW, it should be pointed out that there are several WWE-contracted talents also announced for this event, either backstage, announcers, or WWE Legends deals, as the convention is independent of AEW. And while we’ll soon find out the multitude of podcasts from around the world who will be joining Podcast Row for Starrcade II, they’ve already been announcing the line-up of special guests and Legends who will be there for meet-and-greets throughout the four days. There will obviously be a strong contingent of AEW personnel, including most of the announced roster so far. But here’s a glance at the other all-stars, Legends, and Hall of Famers who have been announced so far.
