According to multiple reports (and his immediate removal from their website), NXT star Solomon Crowe has parted ways with WWE. The story going around is that Crowe requested and was granted his release on Monday.
Previously known for his work on the independents as “The New Horror” Sami Callihan, Crowe (real name Sam Johnston) joined WWE in May of 2013, making his in-ring debut at a live event the following August. After being relegated to live shows and pre-taping dark matches for almost two years, Crowe finally debuted as an onscreen NXT character on February 18, 2015, interrupting and defeating CJ Parker. He had his first televised NXT match on March 4, defeating Bull Dempsey. During his time offscreen, Crowe had developed a “hacker” character who used a tablet to control the arena lights and video feeds. By the time of his debut, the hacker aspects of his character were severely downplayed, and he just kinda became a weird guy who banged on the video screens and had color bars in his entrance video.
The 28-year-old performer had previously made a name for himself in promotions like Dragon Gate USA, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla and EVOLVE, so it’s a good bet he’ll be able to find whatever spot he’s looking for on the independents or abroad. Maybe he’ll end up following CJ Parker to New Japan Pro Wrestling and interrupt him there.
