Maria Kanellis has opened up about a difficult period near the end of her AEW run, revealing that the company extended her contract for three months while she recovered from surgery to remove a tumor in late 2024.
Kanellis departed AEW in January 2025 following a run that saw her primarily work as an on-screen manager. She was closely associated with Matt Taven and Mike Bennett as part of The Kingdom, while also appearing alongside other talent during her time in the company. Her exit came after a challenging personal health battle that she has now discussed in greater detail.
Speaking in a recent interview with Wrestling Life Online, Kanellis said she underwent surgery in October to have the tumor removed. While she was still hospitalized, she received word that AEW wanted to add three months to her agreement, allowing her to focus on recovering without immediately facing uncertainty over her employment.
“So I had the tumor removed and that was in October and they extended my contract out for three months when I was still in the hospital,” Kanellis said. “So I get a call while I’m in the hospital, they wanna extend the contract, thank you for the blessing of having three months of recovery to kind of get back on my feet after that.”
For more background on this topic, read Kevin Knight Calls Learning From AEW Legends a ‘Dream Come True’.
The extension was particularly meaningful in the circumstances Kanellis described. Mike Bennett, her husband and longtime in-ring and on-screen partner, remained under contract at the time, and Kanellis said the additional time gave her an opportunity to heal after surgery while retaining the stability of being signed to AEW.
“Luckily Mike still had a contract at the time and so, I had three months to recover after my surgery and I was still under contract,” she said.
A Serious Diagnosis During Her Final Months With AEW
Kanellis identified the tumor as a pheochromocytoma, a rare type of tumor that can affect hormone production and create significant medical complications. She described the impact the condition had on her body, her emotions, and her ability to approach professional matters in the way she normally would.
“It’s pheochromocytoma and it’s a one in a million tumor,” Kanellis said. “They don’t usually find it until you’re dead. So it changes your personality. It affects your heart. It makes your blood pressure do this.”
Kanellis indicated that the condition contributed to intense changes in mood and energy, saying she felt angry much of the time. She also said it affected her hormones and led to weight gain. In her view, those health issues diminished some of the drive she might otherwise have had to advocate for herself creatively and professionally behind the scenes.
“So you’re just angry all the time,” Kanellis said. “So I think a lot of me lost my fight for really fighting backstage for what I wanted, really kind of going after what I wanted. I gained weight through it because it also, it affects your hormones. So it was just—it was a really dark time.”
Her comments offer important context to the final stretch of her AEW tenure. Wrestlers and on-air personalities are often judged publicly on what is visible on television: their appearances, their storylines, their perceived momentum, and their positioning within a company. Kanellis’ experience is a reminder that difficult health situations can remain largely invisible to fans while profoundly affecting a performer’s daily life and career decisions.
Kanellis’ Role in AEW
Kanellis arrived in AEW in 2022 with Bennett and Taven, bringing extensive experience as a manager, wrestler, presenter, and creative voice. Across a career that has taken her through numerous major promotions, Kanellis has frequently been recognized for the value she adds to acts as a spokesperson and character-driven presence. In AEW, much of that work came through her association with The Kingdom.
The group’s presentation evolved throughout its AEW and ROH appearances. Bennett and Taven competed in tag team and faction programs, and Kanellis remained a key piece of their act when she was available. Her ability to talk, generate heat, and give a team a distinct identity had long been one of the defining strengths of her career.
Her time with the company also included appearances connected to Adam Cole’s storyline involving The Kingdom and Roderick Strong. That angle became a prominent part of AEW programming, with Kanellis positioned around a group that played an antagonistic role in Cole’s world while also navigating its own shifting alliances and rivalries.
Still, Kanellis has recently acknowledged that she did not achieve every goal she had envisioned in AEW. That feeling now sits alongside the personal realities she was confronting late in 2024. A performer’s ambitions can be substantial, but medical treatment and recovery can necessarily take precedence over every professional plan.
The Significance of the Contract Extension
AEW’s decision to extend Kanellis’ contract during her hospitalization stands out as a compassionate element of an otherwise extremely difficult chapter. The three-month extension did not alter the fact that her AEW run ended in January 2025, but it gave her time that mattered during an acute recovery period.
Kanellis framed the move as a blessing, emphasizing the security of being able to get back on her feet after surgery. In an industry where contracts, travel schedules, physical demands, and television opportunities can all create considerable pressure, having a defined period to prioritize recovery represented meaningful support.
It is also notable that Kanellis was describing the extension not as a routine business transaction, but as an act that arrived while she was still in the hospital. That timing clearly stayed with her. Rather than having to immediately focus on the next stage of her career while managing a rare and serious health diagnosis, she had a window in which to recover.
Her account does not remove the disappointment she has expressed about things she hoped to accomplish in AEW, nor does it suggest that the final months of her run were easy. In fact, Kanellis’ own words make clear how dark that time was. But the contract extension provided a measure of stability during an exceptionally vulnerable moment.
A Career Defined by Resilience
Kanellis has spent years adapting to changing roles in wrestling. She has worked as an in-ring talent, valet, manager, host, personality, and advocate, often finding ways to reinvent herself across different locker rooms and eras. That adaptability has been central to her longevity.
Her latest comments place a different kind of resilience at the forefront. Recovering from tumor surgery and confronting the effects of a pheochromocytoma are matters far bigger than storyline positioning or television time. Kanellis’ willingness to speak about how the diagnosis affected her heart, blood pressure, hormones, personality, and confidence may resonate with people who have faced serious health challenges away from the public eye.
It also provides a more complete picture of why a performer may not be operating at their usual level during a particular stretch of their career. Kanellis said she felt she had lost some of her fight for pushing for what she wanted backstage. Her explanation was not an excuse for a missed opportunity; it was a candid assessment of what she was surviving at the time.
Since leaving AEW, Kanellis’ comments have reflected both gratitude and unfinished ambition. She remains someone with a deep understanding of the industry, years of experience, and a proven ability to contribute to a wide range of wrestling presentations. The specifics of what comes next professionally will be determined in time, but her focus in recounting this period was clearly on the health battle she endured and the support she received while recovering.
Looking Back at a Difficult Chapter
Kanellis’ AEW departure in January 2025 marked the end of a notable run, but the final portion of that run was shaped by circumstances that extended far beyond wrestling. Her surgery took place in October 2024, and the three-month contract extension ensured she remained signed while recovering.
For Kanellis, the experience was physically and emotionally demanding. She has been direct about the tumor’s effects and about the toll the situation took on her ability to pursue her own creative aspirations. At the same time, she has expressed gratitude for the extra time AEW gave her during recovery.
That combination of honesty and appreciation is at the heart of her story. The end of a wrestling contract is often discussed strictly in terms of roster moves, future bookings, and missed opportunities. Kanellis’ experience underscores the human reality behind those developments: sometimes the most important outcome is having the time and support needed to heal.
Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.