Chris Jericho: People Get Mad At Me For Being ‘The Learning Tree,’ That’s What You Want

Chris Jericho discusses being “The Learning Tree.” 

Chris Jericho has adopted the nickname “The Learning Tree” as he looks to teach younger talent the ways of Jericho. It started with HOOK, who wasn’t so receptive, and he has now brought Big Bill under his tree. 

Speaking on the Kevin Karius Show, Jericho explained the thought process behind the gimmick. 

“I just started doing this Learning Tree gimmick a few weeks ago. That’s the best thing about wrestling, when people start to get mad at you, you turn into a bad guy and when people like you, you turn into a good guy. This is the start of this whole new persona as we continue the story. That’s the most important thing about wrestling, the story. The matches are important, but the characters and the storylines are what really draws people into watching you and draws people into following what you’re doing. To me, that’s always been the most important thing,” he said.

Asked what “The Learning Tree” means, Jericho replied, “The teacher. I’ve been doing this for a long time. I thought, what’s a cool way to personify that and make people mad? I’ve been doing this at a high level, I thought, I’ll adopt this persona of being the seasoned vet that teaches the rookies the ways of the game. That’s how it started, and the way we’ve portrayed it, people get really mad at me for it. That’s what you want. By being the seasoned vet who knows everything, that makes people mad at me. That’s wrestling for you.”

Jericho will team with Big Bill on the May 8th episode of AEW Dynamite. 

Fightful will have coverage of AEW Dynamite beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday. 

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