The “AEW: Shockwave” mystery is officially over—and no, it was never a secret FOX show. It turns out the project was dead long before it started, and now it’s legally buried.
According to filings obtained by Wrestlenomics, AEW formally abandoned its attempt to trademark the name “AEW: Shockwave” on November 13, ending a 14-month legal battle with the NWA, which previously used the “Shockwave” branding. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office closed the case with prejudice on November 17, meaning AEW is now permanently blocked from trying to use the name again.
AEW first filed to claim “Shockwave” on September 6, 2024, under an “intent-to-use” basis, hinting it was being considered for a future television program. But NWA quickly stepped in, arguing they’d already used the term in commerce since at least December 2020 for a YouTube series. They followed up with a legal demand in September 2024 and a formal opposition filing in June 2025.
The trademark fight escalated throughout the summer, with AEW claiming NWA hadn’t actively used the name in years. The NWA countered that not only had they used “Shockwave” first, but they’d revived it again in January with a new series of shows. Ultimately, AEW blinked—pulling the plug without a formal settlement and giving up rights to the name altogether.
The timing lines up perfectly with Tony Khan’s recent comments with Ariel Helwani, where he dismissed AEW: Shockwave as little more than a shelved concept.
“AEW Shockwave is just an idea. I filed a lot of different names for shows and things like that. That was a name I didn’t know anyone else had used. I’m probably not going to do it.”
Khan admitted he had a phone call with Billy Corgan, NWA president and frontman of the Smashing Pumpkins, to clear the air.
“I had a really nice talk with Billy Corgan. I like Billy… I talked to him on the phone and said, if that’s a show you might want to do again—because NWA had done a Shockwave, which I didn’t know when we filed it—then you can do it, that’s totally fine. He said he appreciated it, so that was nice.”
What Khan didn’t mention on the show was that the trademark had already been formally abandoned and closed the day before the interview aired.
The resolution comes at an awkward moment, too. AEW recently introduced its National Title, a move that raised eyebrows among NWA talent since the NWA already has a championship by that name. Some insiders speculated AEW’s rollout was a subtle jab over the Shockwave dispute. Khan told Helwani he also discussed the National Title with Corgan, simply saying:
“I had a great talk with him about that.”
With the U.S. Trademark Board entering a final judgment, the “Shockwave” name now belongs exclusively to the NWA for use in wrestling programming. Any future show carrying that branding will come from Billy Corgan’s camp—not Tony Khan’s.
Whether the whole thing was a placeholder name, a real project, or a shot across the bow, one thing’s clear: AEW isn’t using “Shockwave” ever again.
Do you think AEW should’ve fought harder to keep the Shockwave name, or was it smart to walk away and keep peace with the NWA? Let us know what you think and drop your feedback in the comments.
November 25, 2025 9:32 am
