Private company

WWE Studios

WWE Studios Inc. (formerly known as WWE Films) is an American film studio owned by the professional wrestling promotion WWE, a division of TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor.1

Last updated Oct 18, 2026.

Overview

2002Founded1

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WWE Studios Inc. (formerly known as WWE Films) is an American film studio owned by the professional wrestling promotion WWE, a division of TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. Founded on July 31, 2002, WWE Studios movies frequently mix well-known actors and actresses in lead roles with WWE wrestlers, and teams with existing production and distribution companies resulting in lower cost for both parties.2

How it started

History

Before the formation of WWE Studios, the WWF had produced the 1989 film No Holds Barred featuring Hulk Hogan under the Shane Distribution Company banner, a precursor to today's company. WWE Studios released the film on DVD in 2012.

WWE Studios was formed on July 31, 2002 as WWE Films, and was seen as "a natural extension of the entertainment business" that they already featured in the weekly Raw and SmackDown television programs. Joel Simon was named as President of the WWE Films and Jed Blaugrund as vice president.

WWE announced the first three film projects in January 2005; The Condemned, starring Steve Austin, The Marine, starring John Cena, and Goodnight, later retitled as See No Evil, starring Kane. Both of these independent film projects were genre films that cost $20 million.

In 2008, the name was changed to WWE Studios. On February 25, 2008, WWE had signed a deal with 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment where Fox communicated to WWE their entitlement to one theatrical film and four direct-to-DVD productions. The move was designed to expand into production of scripted television series and films for networks.

In February 2009, WWE Studios announced the first film which would not feature a WWE wrestler as the lead, with That's What I Am starring Ed Harris as a schoolteacher who's threatened to be outed as a homosexual by a conservative parent. In December 2009, it was announced that Patricia Clarkson and Danny Glover would star in the WWE Studios and Samuel Goldwyn Films co-production of Legendary along with WWE wrestler John Cena. Around the same time, it was announced that production had been completed on another co-production with Samuel Goldwyn Films, the comedy Knucklehead, which starred WWE wrestler Big Show. Further projects were announced in 2010 with WWE wrestlers in lead roles, with The Chaperone starring Triple H, which was released in February 2011, and Bending the Rules starring Edge, which was released in March 2012. These initial releases were largely unsuccessful financially.

From Wikipedia’s article on WWE Studios, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2

Leadership

Who has led WWE Studios, and when. Pick a name to see everywhere that person has worked.

Timeline

  1. 2002Founded Founded1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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