Chris Jericho has found some very interesting inspiration for his current Learning Tree role on AEW programming.

Chris Jericho of All Elite Wrestling recently met with the Daily StarWhen asked how he deals with the criticism he has received from fans recently as he continues to develop his “Learning Tree” persona, Jericho said he doesn’t care because such things happen in phases.

“I just don’t care, I really don’t care,” admitted Chris Jericho. “Because things go in phases, like three years ago when the same people who were chanting ‘Please retire’ were saying Jericho was the greatest of his generation. Kenny versus Jericho in the Tokyo Dome was like the match that changed the course of history. And everyone was talking about it and how great it is.”

“I think the main thing is that I’ve been around for so long, I’ve been working at the top and I’ve never been injured, so I’m always there. It’s not that I’m pushing myself to the shows because my ego is so big that I can’t stand not being there. It’s that I’m working for my boss, who puts me on TV because it increases the ratings. There’s this whole thing that Jericho is gone and the ratings are going down, that’s not true. Look at the ratings every week.

“I mean, not every week, but I would say 80% of the time my segment goes up. It’s one of the biggest winners on the show. So there are a lot of people who just refuse to believe anything else because there are a few critics, and then those critics have their fans, and then all of a sudden a story is told. And then there are the facts. And the facts are that I’m still one of the most valuable characters on the show for a lot of different reasons.

“If I told Tony Khan I wanted to take six months off, he’d say, ‘Are you kidding me? I can’t do that.’ So I just went with it. The character was very sarcastic and a real know-it-all, all the things people said about me. Fine, let’s do it. We all know that person who knows everything about nothing, but in the meantime really doesn’t know what the hell they’re talking about. So let’s do it.

“Let’s be really sarcastic and speak slowly so everyone understands what I’m doing. Hey guys, something like that. And then I played that up a little bit and then I changed it again, made it a little more serious. We sent Samoa Joe through the damn wall and threw a fireball in HOOK’s face. Suddenly it’s not so funny anymore.

Chris Jericho based his current Learning Tree gimmick on The Devil’s Rejects

“I actually built it on that The Devil’s Outcastson these characters. That’s her name in the horror movie Baby. She literally scalps a guy and laughs about it, and it’s kind of creepy. The three of us smile so much and say, “Hi, guys.” But deep down, there’s more to it. So you work on the different layers of a character, see what comes across, and again, like the click of a pen, if I just hold my hand up and say nothing, people start to react. And then, “Hi, guys,” big reaction.

“It’s like the people that hated me, or whatever, they’re just puppets that I manipulate. And that’s the wrestling business. And at that point, I can read the mood in the room and make adjustments and turn myself into whatever I need to be to make people love it or hate it, and either way it gets a reaction, and either way people pay money to see it.”

READ MORE: Chris Jericho stresses the importance of introducing himself at his debut

What do you think of Chris Jericho’s comments? Do you like his character Learning Tree? Or would you rather see him developed further? Let us know what you think by leaving your opinion in the comments section below.

If you use any of these quotes, please credit the Daily Star with a link to this article for the transcription.