Cody Rhodes Calls Out Media For Twisting His Wrestlers Checking Phones Remark

Cody Rhodes is clearing the air after his recent comments about wrestlers obsessing over social media started making the rounds online — and according to him, the media ran a little too far with it.

The Undisputed WWE Champion addressed the reaction during a March 13, 2026 interview with Chris Van Vliet, where he explained how long-form conversations can quickly turn into something different once clips start circulating online. Rhodes said the modern media cycle often takes small moments from interviews and turns them into their own narratives.

While discussing the issue, Rhodes explained that seeing interviews broken down into short viral clips can sometimes make wrestlers realize how differently their words land once the full conversation disappears.

“The clips can be the death of some talent. Remember when we had that great conversation with that youth center? I thought it was a great podcast and I didn’t say anything dumb. Then the clips come out and I’m like, ‘Oh no, I did say that.’”

Rhodes continued by explaining that he understands how this process works, especially for wrestlers who regularly do media appearances. In his view, once someone chooses to do interviews, they have to accept that certain lines might travel further than expected.

“It’s the nature of media today. If you’re going to do what we’re doing today, like I’m doing interviews, then you can’t get upset when something is taken—I don’t want to say out of context because you might have said that—but outside of the conversation it’s always different.”

Rhodes also admitted that joking during long conversations can easily be misinterpreted when those comments get separated from the original discussion: “For me the worst part is that I joke all the time, and then it gets taken outside the conversation and treated like you said it as an absolute fact.”

Rhodes then directly addressed the remark that led to a lot of discussions online — his claim that wrestlers check their phones after their segments air. He explained that the line was meant to be exaggerated rather than taken literally.

“The other day I said something like, ‘Oh, people check their phones after their matches. Every wrestler checks their phones.’ I was obviously being heavy-handed.”

The American Nightmare even noted that some of the headlines he saw afterwards made the comments sound far more dramatic than he intended.

“Then I saw one of my favorite articles that said, ‘Cody Rhodes’ secret about all wrestlers.’ I thought, ‘Man, I don’t know if you needed to word it that way,’ but that’s just the nature of doing media. You might not like everything you hear back.”

The remarks Rhodes referenced originally came during a February 27, 2026 appearance with Brandon Walker. During that conversation, Rhodes talked about how wrestlers often react once their segments air and social media reactions start rolling in. While describing that backstage habit, Rhodes said many wrestlers tend to focus on criticism instead of the positive feedback they receive.

“Here’s what every wrestler does: their segment airs, and they check their phone. Every wrestler does it. They see the one or two negative comments and ignore the six that say, ‘That was great.’ It’s like Yelp — nobody goes on there to write a good review.”

Rhodes explained that one of the biggest traps performers fall into is trying to convince critics to change their opinion. He also said some wrestlers mistakenly believe they can flip critics by engaging with them directly online.

“They’re not all going to like you, right? You’ve got to get over it. When you’re doing that doom vanity search or whatever, no matter what you do — and this is the mistake wrestlers make — they think, ‘Oh, I’ll follow him. I can turn him.’ No. They don’t want you. They don’t like you. And that’s okay.”

Even then, Rhodes isn’t sweating it. In his view, once you step into the media limelight, you have to accept that soundbites, headlines, and social media will do what they do — and sometimes the story takes on a life of its own.

What do you think about Cody Rhodes saying his wrestler phone comment was exaggerated once it spread online? Do you think viral clips are distorting wrestling interviews today? Let us know your thoughts below.

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