Cody Rhodes has had a rollercoaster ride of a professional wrestling career. The second-generation superstar who was once handpicked to be the future face of the WWE failed miserably due to horrendous booking decisions made by the creative team during his first WWE run. His Dashing Cody Rhodes gimmick showed glimpses of a heel superstar who could be a future main eventer but the company failed to capitalize on the character’s momentum.
Rhodes was then repackaged and was given a similar character to that of his brother Goldust named Stardust. He wore face paint and wrestled in a comic book supervillain costume. The character was the final nail in the coffin for the superstar and this led to him falling out with the creative team and requesting his release. He was granted the release in 2016.
In an interview with Bleacher Report in 2019, Rhodes opened up about his failed run in the WWE and admitted that it was his fault that things didn’t work out for him.
“What happened to me at the end of my career in WWE is not WWE’s fault at all. Totally mine. It really is. I wasn’t ready for the role I thought I was ready for. If you want to be John Cena, you got to do the exact same amount of work he does. And that’s a lot of work. I wasn’t doing the work that I should have been doing.” he said. (H/T: Sportskeeda)
After his departure from the WWE, Cody Rhodes was able to reinvent his character and save his wrestling career. His run in NJPW and ROH benefited him massively. Rhodes then played a huge part in creating the promotion All Elite Wrestling in 2019. He surprisingly left AEW in 2022 due to personal reasons.
Cody Rhodes made his WWE return at WrestleMania 38 in 2022
Following his departure from AEW, Cody Rhodes made his return to the WWE. While negotiating with the WWE, Rhodes made sure that he could return as ‘The American Nightmare’ which is the character that he built after his WWE departure.
Rhodes was revealed as the surprise opponent of Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 38. The duo then went on to have multiple matches across Premium Live Events where Rhodes ended up winning all of them.
The former AEW star’s perfect WWE run was unfortunately cut short due to a torn pectoral muscle injury. Rhodes was sidelined and missed the rest of 2022 before making his triumphant return at Royal Rumble 2023.
Cody Rhodes is set to main event WrestleMania 39 against Roman Reigns
Many fans predicted that Triple H taking over creative duties could turn out to be a huge blow for Rhodes’ WWE career. Rhodes fired shots at Triple H during the Double or Nothing PPV in 2019 by smashing a throne that looked similar to that of Triple H with a sledgehammer. But the rumors were put to bed immediately after Rhodes’ return at Royal Rumble 2023.
Cody Rhodes won the 2023 men’s Royal Rumble match right after making his WWE return. He was also able to punch the ticket to the main event of WrestleMania 39.
The official graphic for Roman Reigns v Cody Rhodes at #WrestleMania 39.
— Wrestle Ops (@WrestleOps) January 31, 2023
Let’s. Do. This. pic.twitter.com/jsIc2GOi8w
Rhodes is now set to challenge Roman Reigns for The WWE Undisputed Universal Championship at WrestleMania 39. Fans are now eagerly waiting to see if Dusty Rhodes’ son can do the unthinkable and become the first member of the Rhodes family to win the WWE Championship.