The first episode of Smackdown on Fox on October 4, 2019, also marks the twentieth anniversary of WWE’s blue brand. Unsurprisingly, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE has reached out to the man who popularized the word “smackdown” and happens to also be a huge movie star, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, about making an appearance on the show. The Rock has yet to commit to the date, reportedly because of his busy filming schedule, but it’s still possible that Johnson, who retired from wrestling earlier this month, will make an appearance.
.@WWE Superstars past & present will be on hand to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of SmackDown Live including Brock Lesnar, Kurt Angle, Lita, Mick Foley, Booker T, Hulk Hogan, Trish Stratus, Goldberg, Jerry Lawler, Mark Henry, Ric Flair & Sting. Tix go on sale this Fri at 10am! pic.twitter.com/aIP5tUw2wz
— Crypto.com Arena (@cryptocomarena) August 13, 2019
If The Rock shows up, he will be far from the only WWE legend to appear on the first episode of Smackdown on Fox. WWE is advertising that “WWE Superstars past and present will be on hand at STAPLES Center to celebrate the occasion, including WWE Hall of Famers Kurt Angle, Lita, Mick Foley, Booker T, Hulk Hogan, Trish Stratus, Goldberg, Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler, Mark Henry, Ric Flair and Sting” for the event, and the Staples Center says Brock Lesnar will be there as well. There have also been rumors that Fox wants President Donald Trump to be on the show.
Although there are present-day stars featured in the ads for the October 4 event, that’s a lot of appealing to nostalgia in a time when Fox says they want to inject new life into WWE, especially when fans just saw so many wrestling stars of the past on the Raw Reunion. Aside from a return to fully separated rosters, it will be interesting to see what makes the new Smackdown unique apart from a new logo and executive director.
