New Japan Pro Wrestling confirmed on Sunday that EVIL will depart the promotion following the expiration of his contract at the end of the month.
The organization announced the news on its official website, stating that the 39-year-old will leave at the end of January.
The statement reads as follows:
Thank you for supporting New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
After careful consideration and discussions with NJPW management, EVIL, who has been a long standing member of the NJPW roster will leave New Japan Pro-Wrestling at the expiry of his contract at the end of January 2026.
We apologise to fans for the sudden nature of this announcement. New Japan Pro-Wrestling wishes EVIL the very best in his future activities.
EVIL lost the NEVER Openweight Championship to former Olympic gold medallist judoka Aaron Wolf in Wolf’s debut at Wrestle Kingdom at the Tokyo Dome on January 4th.
No announcement has been made regarding his future bookings or destination. There has been some reporting of interest from WWE, including by Super J-Cast and recent comments from Bryan Alvarez of The Wrestling Observer.
Takaaki Watanabe joined the NJPW Dojo in 2011 before leaving for a learning excursion in the United States in 2013. He returned to the company in 2015, rebranding as the “King of Darkness” EVIL and joining Tetsuya Naito as an original member of Los Ingobernables de Japon.
His career reached a turning point in 2020 when he won the New Japan Cup and defected to Bullet Club, subsequently defeating Naito to become the first wrestler to hold the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championships simultaneously.
EVIL later formed his own sub-faction, House of Torture, which became known for its frequent interference in matches.
