No Creative Update On Royce Keys

Royce Keys officially arrived in the Stamford-based promotion at the Royal Rumble when he debuted in the men’s Rumble match. Previously, the star had been known as Powerhouse Hobbs during his successful tenure in AEW. In his final match for that organization, he lost the AEW Trios Title to the JetSet Rodeo faction.

Since his initial debut, Keys has competed primarily in dark matches at successive SmackDown television tapings. He has already defeated the likes of Nathan Frazer, Chris Sabin, and Alex Shelley in these untelevised bouts. But with such a strong debut behind him, WWE fans are asking why he hasn’t appeared on television.

And it seems that might not be changing anytime soon heading into the spring stadium shows. During a recent Q&A session, WrestleVotes noted that there was no significant update on current creative plans for the star. The situation has led to some frustration among his growing fanbase.

“Creative plans for Royce Keys? Nothing — absolutely nothing,” the source stated bluntly.

The report suggested that while he is present at the events, there is no immediate rush to put him on a live broadcast. This led many people to speculate about his current standing with the writing staff.

“SmackDown was going to be the place for him, and I know he was backstage last Friday night. There’s no clue when he’s showing up on TV,” the insider added.

However, many news outlets took that specific quote to mean that the company has no long-term creative plans at all for him. According to a new report from Fightful Select, that is absolutely not the case. The situation is much more nuanced than it appears on the surface.

The report stated that there have indeed been several things filmed for Royce Keys in WWE recently. However, no further context or a specific date for his next television appearance was provided to the outlet. The company is also heavily promoting his upcoming appearance on Stephanie McMahon’s popular podcast.

Management is likely waiting for the proper storyline to introduce his new character to the mainstream audience. With WrestleMania 42 approaching on April 18 and 19 in Las Vegas, the television time is currently very limited. Keys remains ready to make an impact whenever the creative team finally decides to pull the trigger on his first major rivalry. He will be watching closely as Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre battle for the Undisputed WWE Championship on SmackDown this week.

Make sure to follow us on social media by liking us on Facebook at WrestleStarz and subscribing to us on YouTube at WrestleStar YouTube.