The Godfather has signed a new deal with WWE.
Charles Wright, also known as The Godfather and Papa Shango, had a prominent career with WWE across multiple stints throughout the 1990s. His run as The Godfather during the Attitude Era was particularly memorable. Wright was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2016, and he has continued to make appearances for the company over the years. Most recently, he was seen on WWE Raw XXX on January 23, 2023.
Speaking with The Universal Wrestling Podcast, The Godfather confirmed that he has signed a new Legends Contract, and he stated that it's a five-year deal. He noted that he has been on the company's payroll since 2003.
“To this day, I’ve been on a legends contract since 2003. When I expired, I’ve just now signed another one for five years. So that says something. I’ve been on the payroll since 2003. It ain’t bad being The Godfather, believe me," he said.
When asked whether he owns the trademark for his name, The Godfather stated that he doesn't, as WWE owns the rights. He described howhe filed to trademark Papa Shango and Godfather to protect them so that he will own them once his new contract is up in five years.
“No, I don’t. I can’t get into that right now, but at this point, they own the rights to it. When that contract’s over, I’ll own the rights to it. It came out a few days ago that I filed for the patents for Papa Shango and Godfather… just to protect it. They’ll have it for the next five years, and then it’ll be open. So I’m trying to protect it. For the five heats that I’ll be on contract, it’s theirs," The Godfather said.
The legend also discussed his experience at WWE Raw XXX. He noted that his appearance was initially canceled because he was recovering from hip surgery, and the company had planned a more substantial role for him. But he ultimately popped up in a backstage segment, alongside John Bradshaw Layfield, Baron Corbin, that led to the poker game on the show. The Godfather made it clear that he had a great time seeing everyone backstage.
“It’s always great seeing the guys, especially the ones you haven’t seen in a while. I just had hip surgery, so last Wednesday, they canceled me because they had a little more for me to do. But they had to cancel it because at that point, I was basically still in a walker. Then I had some appearances this week, and I did them on crutches. They called me on Saturday and they were like, ‘Hey, we need you.’ I’m like, ‘Guys, I’m on crutches right now. I’m not going on TV with crutches.’ They came up with that little thing that I did. But it was great. I was in there with Hogan and Dallas. Taker was in there, Teddy Long, Ron Simmons, Bradshaw, Alundra Blayze. You had big screens and telling old stories and lies and taking some pictures. It was a good time," he said.
The Godfather previously recalled his time with the Nation of Domination. Check out his comments here.
Kevin Nash recently stated that he was invited to WWE Raw XXX, but he couldn't see where he could have been used. Click here to see what he had to say.
Catch up on our coverage of WWE Raw here.
If you use any of the quotes above, please credit the original source with a h/t and link back to Fightful for the transcription.
