PWInsider reports that Jerry Lawler is no longer with WWE as the company elected not to offer him a new contract. The company quietly let his broadcast contract expire, which it did at the start of 2024. However, he is still under a Legends deal, according to a WWE source.
Lawler has been involved with WWE since December 1992, when he appeared on WWF Prime Time Wrestling. He was briefly fired from the company in 2001 before returning after the Invasion storyline to replace Paul Heyman. Other than that, he’s been signed to a talent contract with WWE for over thirty years.
The news only just started to circulate as Lawler has been mostly out of the public. He has been recovering from a stroke he had in February 2023, as well as knee replacement surgery. PWI noted that when they contacted people to confirm Lawler was no longer with the company, they were met with surprise from some.
One source noted that under the previous regime, Lawler would have been “taken care of” and signed in some way, but this is a “new era.”
The source added: “The old company is dead. People can say they hate Vince [McMahon] and Kevin [Dunn] all they want, and they’d be right to do so, but certain people would have been taken care of. Lawler would have been one, but this isn’t the old WWE. Howard Finkel, God bless him, wouldn’t have had a job for life here anymore, either.”
Lawler is free to sign elsewhere if he wanted, but it’s unknown if that’s even something he’s considering at this point. He has been making signing appearances at conventions. WWE could likely still bring him in for cameos, as they did in March when they were in Memphis.
