Former WWE star Rick Boogs is among the pro wrestlers confirmed to be a part of the American Gladiators reboot, which also includes 2 names currently signed to AEW.
The Hollywood Reporter broke the news on June 12th regarding the athletes who would be taking part in the series, which will also be hosted by WWE star The Miz. Other pro wrestlers announced to be taking part in the reboot include AEW stars Wardlow and Kamille, both of which have been absent from TV for a number of months. Wardlow last competed on AEW Dynamite back in March 2024 and Kamille last competed on AEW Dynamite in October 2024. Kamille was also part of the Queen of the Ring biopic, which recounted the life story of Mildred Burke.
Other names from the pro wrestling world who are involved in the project are Jessie Godderz and J-Rod of OVW.
The full line-up of Gladiators is as follows:
- Abigail Lay (Springfield, MO)
- Ayinde Warren (Silver Springs, MD)
- Dani Means (Los Angeles, CA)
- Dani Speegle (Houston, TX)
- Drew Aggouras (Boston, MA)
- Emily Nelson (Mesa, AZ)
- Eric Bugenhagen (Milwaukee, WI)
- Fessy Shafaat (Orlando, FL)
- Jason Peele (Southern Pines, NC)
- Jessica Roden (Mount Vernon, OH)
- Jessie Godderz (Weed, CA)
- Joseph Hall (Sacramento, CA)
- Kailey Latimer (Durham, NC)
- Lu Faustin (Brooklyn, NY)
- Michael Wardlow (Middlefield, OH)
- Sydney Hunter (Sacramento, CA)
It was also confirmed in the article that the Gladiators would be given Gladiator names, but these have not been determined at the time of writing.
American Gladiators will air on Amazon Prime later in the year.
Who Is Rick Boogs?
First debuting on NXT as Eric Bugenhagen, Boogs made his arrival on the main roster as the hype man for Shinsuke Nakamura. Along with playing Nakamura’s theme on guitar, Boogs regularly tagged with the former United States Champion. Suffering a torn quad in his match at WrestleMania 38, Boogs returned after a 9 month absence and competed in his final match at SummerSlam 2023. Rick Boogs was one of many WWE stars released from their contract in September 2023.
In an interview that took place after his release, Boogs stated that he was not interested in wrestling again following his WWE release.
Featured image: WWE
