Vince McMahon was forced to resign from his position as WWE’s chief executive in January 2024.
The allegations in the Janel Grant file proved to be the tipping point that compelled the leadership at TKO to push Vince McMahon out of the company. In his latest book ‘Roll the Calls: A Memoir’, Ari Emanuel recounts this turbulent period.
Ari Emanuel, the head of the Endeavor group that owns TKO, revisits the moment those revelations about Vince McMahon emerged. He shares the last conversation he had on the subject:
” More revelations. The worst yet. Vince accused of defecating on a woman during a threesome. It’s astonishing to see how much the business world harbors things we can’t even imagine in business schools. These revelations are on a completely different level, orders of magnitude more troubling than the previous ones. A few moments after the news broke, Shapiro called me. “Ari—you reading this shit?” “Yes.” “We need to get him out of there.” “Yes, I know.” “Completely out, Ari. Hell, right now. No senior position, no further involvement in the company, any kind.” “I know. Are you ready?” “Yes.”
Shapiro dials; Vince answers immediately. I know what to do; it’s clear in my head, but I don’t feel comfortable. So I pull out my signature line: “Tell him, Mark.” Shapiro sighs. “Vince, we’ve crossed several red lines and we’re in uncharted territory here.” We both wait on the phone in silence. Finally, Vince says: “Okay. Tell me what I should do and I will do it today.”
It was at that moment that Vince McMahon publicly submitted his resignation from WWE. It is worth noting that under the WWE sale agreement, the TKO group could not legally fire Vince McMahon; only Vince himself could decide to leave.
Two years later, the lawsuit filed by Janel Grant against Vince McMahon was moved to private arbitration. It remains impossible to verify whether the accusations against Vince McMahon actually occurred.
