AEW originally planned to team together Darby Allin and Gigi Dolin when the promotion first started out.
The pair were married for over a year, tying the knot in November 2018. They both signed for AEW the following year, although sadly divorced in 2020.
Dolin was previously known as Priscilla Kelly on the indies, before signing for the WWE and changing her name to Gigi Dolin.
Gigi Dolin appeared on the Excuse Me podcast, and spoke about Tony Khan’s plan to pair her with then-husband Darby Allin.
She revealed that they would be introduced as an on-screen couple, like Adam Cole & Britt Baker, or Sammy Guevara & Tay Conti.
However, she quickly realised that she would be the “Robin” to Allin’s “Batman”, which was not a role she wanted to portray.
“The thought was flown around for me to be put with him (Darby Allin) in AEW. They said, “You come in and you are his wife. You get kicked in the face and then he gets mad.”
“There were a lot of ideas thrown around from this person and that person about this and that. I explained to everybody that I could come in and do a wife spot that could eventually lead to me having matches or whatever it may be. But, here’s the problem with that.”
If I came in and I’m introduced as Darby’s wife, I’m forever by the fans going to be known as just his wife.”
Then from there on out, everything I do in the ring or on a promo is going to be heavily compared to him and I immediately become Robin to Batman.”
“I think so many people don’t realize, and I’m sure a lot of women would be ok with that kind of role, but me personally when I’ve worked just as hard and just as long for my career, I don’t want my entire work and passion to be credited or overshadowed by your partner.”
“I always wanted him and I to be seen as an equal powerhouse couple where we both bring our own thing to the table. People want to put you together with whoever you are dating.”
Sadly, Darby Allin and Gigi Dolin divorced in 2020, although the pair remain “best friends” to this day.
Dolin is now dating former NXT Tag Team Champion Nash Carter, who was released from the WWE for a Nazi controversy.
Meanwhile, Darby Allin is one of the top stars in AEW, and currently teams with the legendary Sting on a regular basis.
His “loner” character got him over huge with the AEW fans, so it’s probably for the best he was not paired with Gigi Dolin at the start of their careers.