Chris Jericho says he put everything into the Learning Tree gimmick.
The former AEW Champion recently had an interview with Ringer Wrestling. He talked about things such as WWE rumors before his AEW return this year, the reason he dropped his first name upon his comeback, and more.
During the interview, Y2J also discussed the Learning Tree gimmick he had been portraying before his year-long hiatus from Tony Khan’s promotion. Chris Jericho compared it to dirty music, explaining how he used the negativity of the world to generate heat for the character:
“I also think that ‘The Learning Tree’ was a good era because it was really going left field and focusing on the haters of the world, which then made them hate it even more. So that might be a little bit more of a Dirty Work, Music from ‘The Elder’, or St. Anger type of vibe. But I thought that was a really cool one as well.”
Sometimes It Doesn’t Work: Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho introduced the Learning Tree gimmick back in March 2024. He originally tried to get HOOK to join him as a team. The former World Champion was eventually joined by Big Bill, and Bryan Keith in his new faction. Though the whole thing was received poorly by the fans, and it led to the wrestling veteran taking a long hiatus from the business.
The 55-year-old seemingly acknowledged the negative reaction to the character saying that sometimes things don’t work out as you planned. Though he claimed that he gave his 1,000% to the gimmick, same as any other version of his character:
“Whether you like it or not, I’ve given 1,000% for every single iteration of Chris Jericho. There’s never been one where I thought, ‘Oh, this one’s not going to work. Let me focus on it less.’ Everything that I’ve done, I’ve put a million percent into. Sometimes it doesn’t work as well as the others, but the intent, passion, and effort have always been there.”
The former FTW Champion will be joining The Hurt Syndicate and The Elite for a Stadium Stampede match against The Demand, The Don Callis Family and The Dogs at Double or Nothing this Sunday.