World Wrestling Entertainment may be eyeing a return to late-night television.
According to a new filing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, WWE has applied to trademark the phrase “WWE Late Night.” As first reported by Wrestling News, the application was submitted on June 20th and outlines a range of potential uses—from “hosting and producing live comedic performances” to “providing a website in the field of entertainment.”
If WWE follows through, the move could signal a return to a timeslot it hasn’t occupied regularly in decades.
Back in 1985, NBC began airing occasional WWF match cards in place of Saturday Night Live reruns, branding the series Saturday Night’s Main Event. That show ran in SNL’s slot through 1991, briefly moved to Fox in 1992, and was later revived by NBC as a series of primetime specials from 2006 to 2008.
Most recently, Saturday Night’s Main Event returned again last December—this time as a lead-in to SNL for what Variety reported was “the first of four quarterly WWE primetime specials for NBC.”
Whether WWE Late Night is intended to be an extension of that deal—or something entirely new—remains to be seen. But any return to late night by WWE is a tantalizing prospect that could reintroduce the format to a massive and devoted fanbase, many of whom fall squarely within the advertiser-coveted 18–49 demographic.
We’ll keep you updated.
there’s enough grease in late night already
and the McMahon’s are busy dumbing us down in DC
WWE Late Night……so should have taken the 1237am time slot on CBS that Taylor Tomlinson didn’t want. Doh!