WWE News: Former Superstar Lashes Out At Company’s Decision To Release Her In The Wake Of Having A Baby

Maria Kanellis took to Twitter on Wednesday and took a shot at WWE’s decision to fire her and her husband, Mike Kanellis. She cited the timing and circumstances of their personal situation as the main problem with their releases.

Maria and Mike were let go in April as a result of the company’s cost-cutting measures to cope with the economic uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic. They were released along with multiple superstars and employees, though their situation was unique as they’d recently became parents to a second child.

According to Maria, company officials told her that they were fine with the couple having another child. However, the former superstar believes that the decision cost the couple their jobs in the end.

“Did you ever hear the one about the woman that was released from WWE during a pandemic 2 months postpartum after being told having another baby wasn’t an issue…?”

Some of Maria’s followers weren’t happy about the tweet, however, and brought up her reported desire to leave the company while she was still under contract.

“Did you ever hear the one about the lady that took advantage of her situation to have a kid while on a payroll by immediately having another one, meanwhile asking for releases, receiving them then complaining about it?” wrote one follower.

However, other followers pointed out how it was only Mike who asked for his release, even though he has since opened up about the situation and noted how he made amends with the company later on. According to the superstar, he just wanted to work more after not receiving a lot of television or in-ring time, and his time with WWE was a happy experience for the most part.

According to one commenter, the company is also hypocritical for letting Becky Lynch keep her job, even though she announced her pregnancy while still the Raw Women’s Champion. According to the Twitter user, Maria and Lynch’s situations are “the same.”

WWE also used the pregnancy for a polarizing storyline. The angle saw Maria emasculate her husband on episodes of Monday Night Raw, telling him that superstars such as Ricochet and Rusev were the father of her unborn child. The storyline was abandoned without a conclusion, however, as Lana and Bobby Lashley’s affair storyline seemingly replaced it.

Maria has since revealed that the storyline was supposed to end with Mike turning babyface while she took time off to give birth to the child. She also said that the plan was for her to eventually return as a fan-favorite in her own right.