Report: Shawn Michaels Expected to Move into Bruce Prichard’s WWE Creative Role
PWInsider reports WWE plans to promote Shawn Michaels into the creative role currently held by Bruce Prichard, who is expected to scale back duties in 2027.
PWInsider reports that WWE's internal succession plan is for Shawn Michaels to take on the responsibilities currently held by Bruce Prichard in main roster creative, with the change expected after WrestleMania 43 and Prichard stepping back in 2027.
The report says Michaels, who is Senior Vice President of Talent Development & Creative and runs NXT, is the planned internal promotion to fill Prichard’s Executive Director-style role on the main roster. PWInsider did not identify a named successor to Michaels at NXT.
False Finish sources say people at the Performance Center expect AJ Styles could become more involved with NXT after any leadership shift, but that claim is reporting from those sources rather than a WWE announcement.
Prichard’s decision to scale back follows a series of health issues, including prior triceps and shoulder surgeries and recent time away for back problems. Podcast host Conrad Thompson has reported that Prichard is set to undergo neck surgery related to an incident in the 1990s when, as the Brother Love character, he was attacked by The Ultimate Warrior.
The PWInsider report frames the move as a planned succession and says Prichard is expected to move into a consulting role and work from home. Michaels and Paul “Triple H” Levesque have long been close and have worked together in WWE; Michaels assumed day-to-day NXT duties in 2021 when Levesque stepped back for health reasons, while Levesque now leads main roster creative.
PWInsider’s reporting remains unconfirmed by WWE, and the company has not announced any personnel changes.