Mötley Crüe considered expanding their upcoming reunion tour by reaching out to other bands from their era, but according to insights shared on Trunk Nation with Eddie Trunk, several groups reportedly declined due to internal conflicts with certain former or current members.
During an interview with Nikki Sixx, Eddie Trunk asked whether the band had attempted to involve other acts to spark reunions or collaborations for the tour. Sixx described how the band evaluates potential partners, focusing on drawing power and audience reach. “I mean, you look at who’s available, you know, you look at who’s alive, right? And then you’re like, well, which bands are still drawing?” Sixx said. “There are a lot of bands that I really like that only have maybe two members, and they’re playing to 200 to 500-seat clubs, and it’s like, I love them, but you’re playing an amphitheater. It can go up to 40,000 people.”
Sixx also noted the benefits of pairing acts that can help broaden each other’s fan bases. “You want to be sure that you know you got someone that’s pulling in people, and if you’re an Extreme fan or a Tesla fan and you like some Mötley Crüe songs, you may get really turned on to more Mötley Crüe songs or vice versa,” he continued. “Mötley Crüe fans may know one or two Tesla songs, and then they go see them live and they become a bigger fan of their bigger catalog.”
After the interview, Eddie Trunk shared that the band’s behind-the-scenes outreach went further than what has been publicly confirmed. “They’ve got Tesla and Extreme, but they were attempting to go and get some other bands of their era to come together and play,” Trunk explained. “But I’ll say this, and I know Nikki can’t get into it and all that, but I’ve heard some stories through my sources that there were several bands approached about coming together or reuniting with certain members or what have you to potentially make this thing even bigger or to build it out even more.”
Trunk added, “But those bands did not accept the invitation because it would have required them to work with or to reconcile with certain members not in those bands anymore. So, I’ll leave that up to you to speculate on who those bands may have been, but you know, they were attempting to, I think, make it an even bigger thing.”
Mötley Crüe’s latest plans come as part of a broader celebration of major milestones in their career. The band is preparing for a sweeping North American tour in 2026 titled The Return of the Carnival of Sins, described by Tour Setlist as a tribute to both the 20th anniversary of their Carnival of Sins tour and their 45th anniversary as a band. The run will cover 33 cities beginning in July 2026.
Tesla and Extreme have officially signed on as special guests for the full tour, according to Ticketmaster. Unlike the acts Trunk alluded to—those who reportedly declined due to unresolved member issues—these two bands committed without complications and will perform at all scheduled dates.
Mötley Crüe’s current lineup features Vince Neil on vocals, Nikki Sixx on bass, Tommy Lee on drums, and John 5 on guitar, a position he has held since 2022 following Mick Mars’ departure. This lineup has remained active through their 2024–2025 performances, including a Las Vegas residency highlighting their biggest hits.
Based on Trunk’s remarks, the band appeared selective in their negotiations. While they successfully secured two strong supporting acts, other potential collaborators declined, reportedly due to the challenges of reconciling with former members—an issue that is far from uncommon in longstanding rock bands.
