AEW’s next big pay-per-view event, Revolution, is just a few weeks off. But it’s another potential card that is on the mind of many fans, and that’s a sequel to last year’s Forbidden Door show that brought AEW together with New Japan Pro-Wrestling in Chicago.
The two companies have so far not announced a Forbidden Door 2, but AEW boss Tony Khan has mentioned it as a possibility enough times that it feels highly likely. He talked it up again on a recent appearance on the In The Kliq podcast (h/t Ringside News), discussing how much he enjoys working with NJPW.
“We always build up this big event, AEW and NJPW coming together for Forbidden Door,” Khan said. “I think Forbidden Door 1 was such a big success, we’re looking forward to doing it together again. They send a lot of their top stars to AEW and to ROH and I love working with them. It’s been a great relationship and there’s a lot of trust between the parties.”
The inaugural Forbidden Door drew more than 16,000 fans to Chicago’s United Center last June. The card was a hefty one featuring 10 matches (plus several more on the pre-show), and was headlined by a four-way match for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship and an AEW World Championship match between Jon Moxley and Hiroshi Tanahashi.
Khan has so far not signaled where or when a Forbidden Door 2 might take place, except to express his feeling that it should remain in the U.S. There is a fairly lengthy time between AEW’s Double or Nothing each May and All Out in September that make the summer appear a perfect time to keep holding the event if the companies so choose.
AEW has also had great success in the Chicago market to date, but with All Out traditionally held in that area too, it might make sense for Forbidden Door 2 to head somewhere else. In any case, it’s safe to say fans and industry observers will be watching carefully every time Khan teases a big announcement — something he’s done for this week’s episode of Dynamite.