Cody Rhodes has revealed a surprising influence behind one of the most iconic logos in wrestling today. As it turns out, the American Nightmare logo wasn’t inspired by another wrestler at all—it actually borrowed from one of the biggest fighting game franchises ever made.
During an episode of What Do You Wanna Talk About? with Andrew Schulz and David Dastmalchian, the conversation turned to the creative process behind Cody’s character. Rhodes explained that when he was putting together the look of the American Nightmare, he wanted to avoid the typical wrestling imagery of skulls and guns and instead create something that felt unique. That’s when he found inspiration in Shadaloo, the villainous organization from Street Fighter.
“All the way back to Shadaloo, yes, when I was… I think I had done Bullet Club, or we were figuring out what the American Nightmare looked like, and I really wanted my own logo, and I didn’t want the traditional skull. I didn’t want the guns. I wanted to take this different direction. And a lot of the art style came from the Shadaloo logo. So, if you look…”
This caught Dastmalchian completely off guard. Knowing Cody’s reputation for occasionally telling what fans jokingly call “Cody Lies,” he stopped to ask whether Rhodes was actually being serious. Rhodes quickly shut that idea down, making it clear he wasn’t making anything up and revealing that he’d actually been waiting for an opportunity to mention the connection.
“Not one bit. Actually, it was the only piece of information I had loaded up in the media…”
The American Nightmare logo has become one of the most recognizable symbols in wrestling, appearing on everything from Cody’s gear to merchandise and even tattooed on his neck. Knowing that part of its design traces back to Street Fighter is a fun piece of trivia that many fans probably never saw coming.
Were you surprised to learn the American Nightmare logo was inspired by Street Fighter? Let us know in the comments below.
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