Cody Rhodes has worked with Triple H for years, but there was one conversation that had the American Nightmare genuinely worried about how things were going to play out — and it involved stepping away from WWE while holding the company’s biggest championship.
During an appearance on the Double Coverage Podcast, Rhodes revealed that he was nervous about approaching Triple H to discuss taking time away from WWE to film Street Fighter. While the company has become more welcoming toward outside opportunities, Cody wasn’t sure how WWE’s Chief Content Officer would react to one of his top stars leaving television for a Hollywood project.
Rhodes explained that Triple H has always served as both a mentor and a guiding figure throughout his wrestling career. That relationship made the conversation particularly difficult, especially because Cody understood the responsibilities that came with being WWE Champion.
“I don’t think I’ve ever shared this before, but I was nervous to ask uh Triple H. That’s my um really my my coach and my guide in the wrestling world.”
Cody pointed out that Triple H has an enormous responsibility when it comes to making WWE programming successful. From Raw and SmackDown to NXT and premium live events, his job is to keep audiences invested while balancing the needs of the entire roster. That made the idea of taking the WWE Championship off television for a filming commitment something Rhodes didn’t want to approach lightly.
“It’s important as the head of creative as he is, wrestling is his number one priority as far as business wrestling, getting people to enjoy the live Smackdown, Raw, PLE, NXT, whatever it is. He wants their enjoyment. He wants them hooked in. He wants the young fans happy, the old fans happy, the hardcore fans happy. He’s trying to cover a very large swath. So to say, ‘Hey, the biggest title we have, the WWE title is going to go away.’ I was nervous.”
But the response wasn’t anything like Cody expected. Instead of shutting down the opportunity or making the situation difficult, Triple H immediately began discussing how they could work around the filming schedule. Even more surprising to Rhodes was that Triple H started thinking about how his Hollywood appearance could fit into WWE’s storytelling once he returned.
“And that was one of the most pleasantly surprising conversations ever. not only great, we’ll get this dates and we’re going to work it out, but I think you could do this and then when you come back to have some ideas about how it could all flow and not just to jump to the traditional, well, let’s uh set them on fire and throw them off the Tron and you know, like not to go to the traditional uh book them on the way out type.”
Rhodes explained that WWE’s approach to outside opportunities has changed considerably under Triple H and WWE President Nick Khan. In the past, asking for a month or two away to pursue another project could result in an immediate rejection. Now, he believes the company recognizes the potential benefits of having its wrestlers appear in major productions.
“It’s a really good time to work at WWE in terms of that because that conversation used to be no. That used to be you’d walk into, hey, I need I need a month, I need two months. No.”
And Cody wasn’t finished praising Triple H. He said the experience reinforced his belief that WWE has the right person in charge, particularly because Triple H understands how to balance wrestling with opportunities beyond the ring.
“He just has a a larger worldview, which you only get with experience. And I more of the younger talent when they get reps in with Hunter and they get to know who he is, it’s who he is now is is the perfect person and the only person who could lead WWE.”
That praise extended to WWE’s developmental system as well. Rhodes credited Shawn Michaels for NXT’s success, although he admitted that even someone with Michaels’ experience can’t teach wrestlers everything they need to know before reaching the main roster. According to Cody, one of the biggest challenges for younger talent is learning how to manage the demanding travel schedule, something that can only be mastered through experience.
“NXT is killing it right now for example that’s our developmental and um Shawn Michaels is in charge of it and if you have Shawn Michaels in charge of something everybody who comes from there is going to be amazing the number one thing that they don’t teach and they can’t teach there’s no way to teach it you can be the best in a warehouse in a home area but when you go on the road we are a different entity than that.”
Cody’s experience with Street Fighter clearly left an impression on him beyond Hollywood. What started as an uncomfortable conversation turned into an example of how much WWE’s approach to its top talent has evolved.
Do you think Triple H allowing WWE stars to pursue major Hollywood opportunities is good for the company, or should champions be expected to focus entirely on wrestling? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
