Stay Lifted On WWE Ring Boys Lawsuit, TKO CEO Reaches Billionaire Status, Rock’s Company Signs Disney TV Studios Deal

– TKO CEO Ari Emanuel has been added to the Bloomberg Billionaire index, officially making him a public billionaire. Emanuel is the CEO of TKO and Endeavor Group Holdings, which is the primary shareholder in the combined company featuring WWE and UFC.

– Deadline is reporting that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s Seven Bucks Productions has signed a first-look television deal with 20th Television, a division of Disney Television Studios. The new agreement will see Seven Bucks develop comedy, drama, limited series, adult animation, and unscripted content for Disney’s entertainment platforms, including Disney+, Hulu, ABC, and FX.

– A federal lawsuit involving allegations of abuse against former underage ring boys in the 1980s and 1990s has resumed in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland (Baltimore). The case, filed against TKO Group Holdings, WWE, Vince McMahon, and Linda McMahon, had previously been stayed but is now moving forward. The court has ordered the defendants to respond by Monday, April 7. The lawsuit, brought by five former ring boys who worked for the then-World Wrestling Federation as minors, alleges that the company and the McMahons failed to protect them from abuse by the late Mel Phillips. Phillips, a former ring announcer and supervisor of the ring crew, has long been accused of misconduct.