Even before the crazy ending to the fourth season, the future of Lucha Underground has been up in the air. The most hopeful recent comment about a fifth season came from Vampiro at an AAA press conference, where he said the Mexican wrestling company still wants to exchange talent with the Temple. However, not all the Lucha Underground talent wants to return.
Ivelisse, who’s been on the show since its first season, said on social media today that she’s been trying to get out of her contract for over a year. In her words:
I’ve done everything in my power to avoid having to do this but… at this point I literally have no other choice… For a bit over 1 1/2 now I’ve been battling LU to grant me my release. They convinced me to do S4 under the promise that I’d be released after the season concluded and was still unhappy.
They currently are still refusing to do so despite having been told numerous times that they would.
This has caused me an unbearable amount of grief for so long now, I really have no words to describe and don’t know what else to do… being legally held hostage while Pro Wrestling is booming is a matter not to be taken lightly, especially coming from someone who has dedicated their life to their work, it’s everything to me. I am at my wit’s end, so at this point, regardless what happens from here on out, at the very least my story is told.
This comes soon after Shane Strickland, LU’s Killshot, stated that he is “officially a free agent again” the morning of January 15, 2019.
Lucha Underground experienced a fair amount of contractual drama leading up to season 4 too, but wrestlers trying to get out of their contracts or letting them expire doesn’t inspire hope for the show’s return.
Update: Joey Ryan showed support for Ivelisse on social media and commented that “Prior to S4, we were told anybody who requested a release would be granted one. Some did and left after the tapings. Others showed faith in the product and now seems are being punished for it. With no S5 in sight, it’s petty to keep anyone locked up.”
https://twitter.com/JoeyRyanOnline/status/1085301692961181697
