Ava Raine Shuts Down ‘Nepo Hire’ and ‘Consistently Terrible’ Claims: The Rock’s Daughter Takes On Her Critic

WWE put The Rock's daughter, Ava Raine, in charge of NXT on TV, and she is definitely getting a trial by fire. After a messy finish on the October 28 episode, Bryan Alvarez went off on her booking, she clapped back on X, and the whole thing spiraled into old controversies fans have not forgotten.

What set this off

On this week's NXT, the main event between Kelani Jordan and Jordynne Grace turned chaotic when NXT Champion Ricky Saints and Trick Williams brawled at ringside. The ref got pulled into the chaos, Jordan capitalized with a shot the official did not catch, and she kept her title in a finish that had people groaning.

Then Ava, in her on-screen General Manager role, handed Trick Williams another shot at Saints' championship. That decision lit up Wrestling Observer Radio's Bryan Alvarez, who slammed Ava's judgment and took direct aim at how she is being used.

Alvarez called her 'the most consistent in being terrible' and labeled her a 'nepo hiring.'

Ava fired back a few hours later with a simple line on X: 'man... i remember my first day on earth too'

Ava fires back

The post came from her @avawwe_ account on November 1, and it reads exactly like a soft-elbow response: not a meltdown, but clearly not letting the jab slide either.

Why this is touching a nerve

This is not the first time Ava's on-screen calls or off-screen posts have set people off. Here is the recent run of flashpoints fans keep bringing up:

• September 27 (No Mercy): Ava announced an NXT special called 'Invasion' for October 7. Given that TNA wrestlers have been crossing into NXT lately, the title tracked with the story. The problem: October 7 now carries heavy real-world weight because of Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed roughly 1,200 civilians. Fans said the optics were tone-deaf, even if unintended.
• October 28 (NXT): The Saints–Williams ringside fight derailed the Jordan–Grace main event. With the ref distracted, Jordan nailed an unspotted shot and kept her belt. Ava then granted Trick another title shot anyway, which is what Alvarez hammered her for.
• Social post that sparked backlash: After reports circulated that conservative activist Charlie Kirk had been killed, Ava shared an Instagram Story that said, 'If you want people to have kind words when you pass, you should say kind words when you're alive.' Many of Kirk's supporters were furious and some even called for WWE to fire her. WWE did not act on those calls. Note: I have not independently verified the circumstances in those reports.

The bigger picture

Some of this is storyline heat. Ava's GM character makes calls that are supposed to rile people up, and booking chaos that bleeds into a finish is a classic wrestling move. But the 'nepo' tag was inevitable the second Simone Johnson stepped into WWE, and every shaky decision (or clumsy event title) gets filtered through that lens.

Is Alvarez being brutally honest or just working himself into a lather over TV booking? Depends on your appetite for outrage. What is clear: Ava is not ducking the noise, and WWE is not flinching either.