All elite Wrestling (AEW) officials were reportedly displeased with the unauthorized release of photographs from the recent wedding of MJF and Alicia Atout. Images surfaced online showing several AEW wrestlers in attendance, including babyfaces like Hangman Page, prompting initial lighthearted commentary from AEW President Tony Khan.
The leak is significant because MJF actively cultivates a villainous persona, aiming to evoke the antagonistic heels of 1970s and 80s wrestling. Maintaining the illusion of genuine animosity between wrestlers is crucial for compelling storytelling, and the leaked photos risked undermining that effort. According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Radio, AEW leadership wasn’t thrilled the images became public, despite acknowledging the incident wasn’t catastrophic.
Meltzer explained that MJF, and likely Page as well, would prefer to maintain a degree of separation between their in-ring personas and real-life interactions.”He’s…look, he’s trying to be a heel from the 70s and 80s in 2025,” Meltzer said. “And it’s not the easiest thing to do,and he works very hard at being that kind of a heel that people genuinely hate,and trying to make…and there’s nothing wrong with trying to create the illusion that these feuds are real.”
While AEW wrestlers later shared official photos from the event, the initial images originated from fan discoveries within private Facebook family albums, as noted by Bryan Alvarez.
