Chris Jericho Drops Chris for AEW Return
chris jericho returned to pro wrestling a couple months before this interview and came back in AEW under a shorter name. Since April, he has been introduced simply as Jericho, with the chyron during his entrance and his ring introduction both using that version.
Jericho and David Shoemaker
Jericho told Ringer Wrestling’s David Shoemaker that he always calls the current version his favorite when asked about his wrestling characters or gimmicks. “Whenever I get asked [what's his favorite of his wrestling characters/gimmicks], I always say the current version, because if I didn't then it'd be like 'what am I doing'.”
He said he likes the idea of what he is doing now with “Jericho,” and that dropping his first name created online intrigue. “I like the idea of what I'm doing now with ‘Jericho’, and by not using that first name a lot, it created this whole intrigue online like, ‘What’s he doing? What’s the reason?’”
Self-Titled Album Comparison
Jericho said the concept came from a self-titled album, then compared it to Metallica’s The Black Album and The Beatles’ The White Album. “Everyone knows who Jericho is, and when you hear that name, then you can remember whatever memories you have on your own.”
“So it really is like Metallica The Black Album — you know who Metallica is, you know what’s going on. The Beatles The White Album, same thing.”
That framing fits a wrestler who has spent years branding each phase as its own act. “That’s kind of what the idea is for the ‘Jericho’ era, and I like it, I like what’s been going on and going with the flow, seeing what’s working and what’s not.”
AEW’s First Men’s Champion
AEW’s first-ever Men’s World champion is still playing coy about what went on between him and WWE, which is why the name shift lands as more than a cosmetic tweak. Jericho’s return was unusual because it happened in AEW rather than WWE, after months of rumor that he might head back the other way and reports that Tony Khan may have extended his deal.
For viewers, the practical change is simple: the television graphics and ring introductions now lean on “Jericho,” while the rest of the booth and other performers still call him Chris. That split keeps the presentation loose enough to invite speculation without changing who he is in the ring.
