What’s the story?
After a brief hiatus from WWE programming, Randy Orton’s return date has been confirmed. Orton’s been busy in Thailand, filming scenes for his role in Seth Green’s new movie Changeland, but with those duties now fulfilled, his comeback’s been confirmed for Tuesday night’s SmackDown Live show.
In case you didn’t know…
Orton’s been absent from both WWE TV and live events since the 4th of July SmackDown show. That may not seem like the longest time, but given that he’ll be challenging for the WWE title in just seven days at Battleground, his absence this past week was somewhat noticeable. Luckily, WWE looked to fill his void with the blockbuster announcement that the Punjabi Prison will be returning to SmackDown this Tuesday night, but you still get the feeling there’s work left to be done in promoting a third successive Orton vs. Jinder Mahal bout.
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Going in depth
Notably, this doesn’t seem to be WWE Studios movie, so it’s interesting to see the company affording him some time off to travel halfway around the world for the sake of filming a movie. Then again, Green’s had a close working relationship with WWE in the past, having appeared on Raw and also helped create the Camp WWE series, so perhaps this is just one of the company’s ways of trying to maintain good terms with him in case they want another series commissioned.
Also read: 5 things Randy Orton has gotten away with in the WWE
What’s next?
First things first, and Orton will presumably have plenty to do when he makes his return to SmackDown return, in what will be the Battleground go-home show. His job will be made easier by the presence of the Punjabi Prison, though the company needs to be careful not to give too much away ahead of next Sunday’s pay-per-view.
Beyond that, the news also presents the idea of possible future movie roles for Orton, partly because his career could soon be winding down, and partly because this seemingly represents his first foray outside of the world of non-WWE Studio roles.
Author’s take
With the WWE Championship scene relatively lukewarm right now, this was hardly the optimum time for one-half of title picture to take a week off—especially with Battleground right on the horizon. Not only that, but it sends something of a strange message that such a high-profile name was afforded a time off at such an important juncture.
Perhaps WWE really is just looking to maintain good terms with Green, or maybe this could suggest that beginning of a shift in priorities for Orton. At 37 years old, following John Cena’s lead in branching out from pro wrestling and into the world of film could prove a smart career choice.
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