Shawn Michaels’ official WWE title is Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative.
Effectively, this means he oversees the booking of NXT — he wields “the pencil” for WWE’s developmental brand.
But if the pencil were to be passed, who could realistically take on that role?
Here are several individuals who could step up to lead NXT’s creative direction in the event that Michaels vacates the position.
5. William Regal
After a short stint with AEW in 2022, William Regal returned to WWE, taking on the role of Vice President of Global Talent Development.
There are few people more closely associated with NXT than Regal, having played a major role in the brand’s peak creative period between 2014 and 2022 — both as an on-screen General Manager and behind the scenes, working directly with talent development.
Regal is widely respected for his knowledge, his eye for talent, and his ability to cultivate future stars.
Given his intimate history with the brand and strong backstage reputation, Regal would appear to be a natural potential replacement for Shawn Michaels in NXT.
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4. CM Punk
It has been oft-reported since CM Punk’s return to WWE in 2023 that his eventual goal is to step into Shawn Michaels’ role and take over creative leadership for NXT.
This has been reinforced by multiple visits to the Performance Centre, and NXT talent have frequently spoken about the personal advice that Punk has given them — something the former Cora Jade mentioned in her recent appearance on the Ariel Helwani Show, where she described Punk as a mentor.
Punk also reportedly had significant input on creative in AEW during the launch of Collision, which was initially built around him.
Whether Punk will get his wish remains to be seen, but he is on good terms with Michaels and has clearly taken an interest in the NXT product.
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3. Gabe Sapolsky
Former Ring of Honor booker Gabe Sapolsky is currently overseeing WWE’s ID program – scouting and developing indie wrestling talent.
As part of his role, he’s also involved in booking WWE’s version of EVOLVE — an influential independent promotion he once owned, which developed many of today’s stars across multiple promotions.
Sapolsky has a proven track record when it comes to both developing talent and booking some of the best independent wrestling of the modern era.
There are arguably few more qualified candidates to replace Shawn Michaels should he step down from the role of NXT’s booker.
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2. Jeremy Borash
Jeremy Borash was a long-time on-air presence in TNA, where he also worked behind the scenes in creative, playing a key role in Matt Hardy’s late-career resurgence with the iconic Broken Hardys gimmick.
Borash joined WWE in 2018 and currently works as Senior Director of Content and Development, with much of his focus based in NXT, including his role as both an announcer and producer on WWE LFG.
More recently, Borash has been involved in WWE’s ongoing purchase of Mexican lucha libre promotion AAA, reportedly serving as WWE’s creative representative in the partnership, according to Lucha Libre Online, and reportedly being the man who ran the Worlds Collide event.
Given his proven track record in creative, Borash could very well be the man to take the pencil from Shawn Michaels when his time is done.
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1. Abyss
Former legendary TNA wrestler Abyss (Chris Park) retired from his wrestling career in 2019, taking on the role of producer with WWE.
He recently did an interview with Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp, discussing his current role within the company.
Interviewer Sapp noted the praise Park has been receiving backstage for his work as a producer – including recent credit from Cody Rhodes.
Given the respect he’s earned within the company for his creative approach, could the former TNA monster be given the opportunity to take creative lead in WWE’s developmental system?
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