Cody Rhodes On Turning Heel: You’re Not Meant To Be The Next Rock, You’re Meant To Be The Bad Guy
Cody Rhodes promises to scorch the earth if he turns heel one day.
Cody Rhodes has been the top guy for the WWE since he originally came back at WrestleMania 38 to battle Seth Rollins. Fast forward to this past year’s WrestleMania 40 and he became an even bigger face going against Roman Reigns in a match where he had to win or he would be sent down to the back of the line again.
Rhodes knows he is the biggest face the company has seen since John Cena, but Rhodes also knows that if he were to turn heel, it would be a scorched earth for everyone who came in his way.
“Being a heel in wrestling, it’s very hard to be a heel today. What is a heel? If a heel is trying to actively take something away that you like. You’ll hear people in wrestling say there is a wrong type of heat. There is truly no such thing as the wrong type of heat as long as you can manage it. As long as you can take it. Today, people get canceled for everything. Every hour, somebody is getting canceled and uncanceled. A heel’s job is to get canceled. A heel’s job is to not be cool and not sell merch. In wresting, the term has gotten more identified with The Rock types that aren’t really heels. He’s just The Rock. He’s in a Disney movie. He’s beloved. Watching him is a prime example. You have to really go to lengths to upset people and do something. In this case, he upset them greatly because he wa taking away a spot. He was smart enough to know, ‘that’s a good spot to be in.’ Most people are uncomfortable in that spot. Most people don’t want to explore being hated. John Bradshaw Layfield, you couldn’t sell his merch. Even in his hometown. If there were JBL shirts, he would go up to the stands personally and make sure they were not there. He was meant to be hated. He wanted you cheering for John (Cena) and Eddie Guerrero. That is a hard ask. There is a beauty if you can commit to being a bad guy. It’s a unique space creatively. You have to be really vulnerable and open and blood hungry in terms of how you are on the microphone.
“There is a growing sect of fans that want to see that happen for me at some point. If you’re really wishing for that, it’s scorched earth. Then you might be, ‘We don’t like that.’ You have to really go scorched earth and in 2024, that is hard for anyone to understand. You’re not meant to be cool. You’re not meant to be the next Rock. You’re meant to be a bad guy.” Rhodes said on The Pivot.
Rhodes, Randy Orton, and Kevin Owens recently lost at Money in the Bank to the Bloodline’s Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu, and Tama Tonga.
h/t to Fightful for the transcription.
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