Cody Rhodes has never been shy about talking about the people who shaped his career, but his relationship with Brian Gewirtz sounds like one that never quite clicked. The Undisputed WWE Champion admitted that while he has plenty of respect for The Rock’s longtime creative partner, he doesn’t think that feeling has always gone both ways.
The subject came up while Cody was speaking with Simone Johnson on What Do You Wanna Talk About?. Simone was discussing her new role at Seven Bucks Productions and praising both her father, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and Gewirtz when Cody decided it was time to give his own take on the longtime WWE writer. Cody first explained that his father, Dusty Rhodes, had a very different relationship with Gewirtz. Dusty apparently even had his own nickname for him.
“My dad loved Brian. He used to call him a Rabbit, I have no clue why. I used to call him Rabbit, but I learned very quickly that Brian — I knew I wasn’t my dad, I got that — but Brian did not like me like he liked my dad.”
Cody said he even made the mistake of using Dusty’s nickname for Gewirtz himself at one point. He said Gewirtz never snapped at him over it, but Cody still came away with a pretty clear impression about how Gewirtz viewed him.
“And I think I made the mistake of calling him that one time and he didn’t get sharp with me, but Brian, I would say, is not a fan of mine, yet I am a fan of Brian’s.”
That relationship becomes even more interesting considering Gewirtz has remained heavily involved with The Rock’s wrestling projects. Ringside News previously covered how The Rock’s WWE creative has been handled by a very small circle that included Gewirtz and Triple H, and Gewirtz has also been directly involved in major creative conversations surrounding Cody himself.
Cody then tried to explain why things may never have clicked between them. In his mind, Gewirtz connected with Dusty because Dusty was an idea machine who could throw something wild into a format at any moment.
“I think Brian respected my dad, loved him, but also knew he’s not writing a format. Right. He’s an idea guy. He’s actually gonna ruin this format I wrote by dropping an idea.”
Cody then brought up his brother Dustin Rhodes, saying Gewirtz may have connected with him because Dustin was willing to fully commit to some of WWE’s stranger creative concepts. Then came Cody’s brutally funny explanation for how he believes Gewirtz may have reacted when he finally had to write for him.
“And then I think he loved my brother because my brother was, ‘Yeah, I’ll go into a gas station and be Darth Vader with Booker T.’ I can see it. Yeah, I can see this.”
“And then I think he met me and thought, ‘This guy’s such a dick.’ He was like, ‘Why is he not going to the gas?’ Yeah, he’s so vanilla.”
Cody didn’t pretend the creative relationship was easy either. He admitted that he struggled working under Gewirtz during his first WWE run, even if he recognizes now that he was still being given meaningful opportunities.
“And you wanna give him, the vanilla’s a very popular flavored ice cream, but obviously that ain’t gonna land when he’s the head writer. But I definitely struggled under him. I was always in a good position, so I look at the struggle and go, ‘Was I really?’ But yeah, I just never found a ratatat. We weren’t groovy.”
Despite all of that, Cody made it clear this wasn’t him burying Gewirtz. He immediately pivoted to praising the writer’s body of work and everything he has accomplished since his WWE writing days.
“But now it’s really great ’cause everything he’s done is your body of work you put up in front of people, his body of work. It’s unmatched. Look at what he did with Seven Bucks. Look at what he did with just Monday Night Raw.”
There’s also some history behind the tension between the two. Ringside News previously covered Gewirtz discussing Cody’s demeanor during the infamous WrestleMania 40 Rock segment, with Cody later addressing Gewirtz’s criticism and admitting there may have been some truth to it.
Gewirtz has also been tied directly to major ideas involving Cody and The Rock. Ringside News previously detailed scrapped WWE plans that involved Kevin Owens winning the championship after Cody defied The Rock, giving even more context to how closely Gewirtz has remained connected to some of Cody’s biggest creative situations.
Cody may believe Brian Gewirtz isn’t exactly president of his fan club, but he clearly isn’t holding a grudge. The two may never have found that creative rhythm during Cody’s first WWE run, but Rhodes still gave Gewirtz his flowers and made it clear he respects what the longtime writer has accomplished.
What do you make of Cody Rhodes saying Brian Gewirtz is “not a fan” of him despite Cody respecting his work? Do you think their different creative styles simply never matched up, or is there more to the story? Let us know your thoughts and feedback in the comments.
