On a recent episode of Insight with Chris Van Vliet, former WWE Superstar Nic Nemeth, known to fans as Dolph Ziggler, revealed the story of how he secured his release from the company. After feeling underutilized despite being paid “an astronomical amount of money,” Nemeth sent a detailed email directly to Vince McMahon and other top executives to make his case.
“I wrote a really, really long email to Vince, Hunter, Bruce, Ed, and maybe one other person, and it was a compliment sandwich,” Nemeth explained. “‘This is the greatest thing ever. I’m the luckiest guy in the world… you’re using me in a role that a local would be in, but you’re paying me as the WrestleMania main eventer. This is bad for you, and this is bad for me.’”
Nemeth said that of the recipients, only Vince McMahon replied. “Nobody wrote me back, except for Vince. And he said, ‘Wow, this is incredible. This is a lot to read. I’m not sure what to do,’” Nemeth recalled. “And I said, ‘Vince, I will fly to Stamford tomorrow morning and we will finish this.’ He goes, ‘Give me a week to think about it.’ I said, ‘I really want to figure this out right now.’ He goes, ‘Give me one week. It’s a lot to process.’ I said, ‘Okay,’ and the next week I was on the list of people who were released. So, it worked.”
He believes the timing was crucial, as his request came when the company was preparing to be sold. “If they were not in the process of trimming the fat to be purchased by another company, I would assume that I would have been in there for another year and a half or so,” he added.
Nic Nemeth was released from his WWE contract in September 2023 after a nearly 20-year tenure with the company. The release came shortly after the finalization of the TKO Group Holdings merger. Nemeth has since gone on to have a successful run in TNA Wrestling.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit Insight with Chris Van Vliet with an h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
