Big Bill admitted that he was not a huge fan of his new AEW name when he first joined the promotion but he quickly changed his mind.
Bill has made a name for himself in the promotion since debuting in May 2022 as MJF‘s surprise pick to face Wardlow. His performance in that match impressed AEW management and fans alike, eventually leading to his signing with the company in August 2022.
Known previously as W. Morrissey in TNA Wrestling and Big Cass in WWE, his AEW moniker “Big Bill” was the brainchild of AEW President Tony Khan. The origin of the name was recently discussed on the Talk Is Jericho podcast, where Chris Jericho shared the story behind it.
I remember Tony talking about you and he was like, ‘I’m thinking about bringing him in and I want to call him Big Bill. That’s the name, Big Bill.’ Alright, Big Bill it is.
Jericho recalled that Bill himself initially had reservations about the new name.
My first week here, MJF told me, and a few people told me, ‘What do you think of the name Big Bill?’ At first, I was like, ‘I really don’t like that.’ They were like, ‘It was Tony’s idea, and Tony loves it.’ I said, ‘It’s fantastic.’
Bill explained, acknowledging that the name eventually grew on him due to Khan’s enthusiasm. Bill recently teamed up with Chris Jericho and Bryan Keith on Dynamite when the trio took on Mark Briscoe, Tomohiro Ishii, and Kyle O’Reilly in a high-stakes Fight Without Honor match.
Which Former WWE Superstar Did Big Bill Say Helped Him Through Alcohol Addiction?
Big Bill praised a former WWE Superstar for helping him through recovery from his alcohol addiction and that former star was Shannon Moore. Bill said that Moore helped him get into rehab numerous times and also convinced him to stay when he considered leaving which massively helped him overcome his addiction.
H/t to Fightful.com