Cody Rhodes Says Intense Street Fighter Training Felt “Almost Like Real Fighting”

Cody Rhodes just gave fans a behind-the-scenes look at what went down during the filming of the new Street Fighter movie—and it sounds like the Undisputed WWE Champion came out of Australia with more than just a movie credit.

During an appearance on Bertcast, Rhodes opened up about how intense and inspiring the production was. He admitted that walking into the project was nothing like he expected. From his very first meeting with director Katau Kale, Cody was pushed to think bigger and take ownership of the creative process.

“I walked in and I met with Kale, and he’s like, ‘Oh, you get to make a movie. What movie do you want to make?’ I was like, ‘I don’t know what I don’t know.’ I pitched him three, and he goes, ‘Okay, we’ll make one. What do you want to make?’… He did something really special for the cast with Street Fighter.”

Rhodes plays Guile in the live-action reboot and said the lead cast—Koji as Ryu, Noah as Ken, and Kina as Chun-Li—took things seriously from day one. He was impressed by how hard they trained and how deep they dove into their characters, even though the film is an action-comedy.

“The three main characters… they were there early. They were really looking into everything—breaking down these scenes… taking it incredibly seriously.”

When the rest of the star-studded cast arrived—including 50 Cent, Roman Reigns, Andrew Schulz, and Cody himself—the director made it clear they needed to match the energy of the main cast. Rhodes recalled a moment where they all sat down to watch a rough edit of the film, and it completely shifted his mindset.

“We watched a sizzle reel of edits they had already made. And I felt like I was on a little league sports team. The way he was leading it, it felt like, that’s my coach… they’re asking us, ‘Hey, look at what we’ve made in 3 weeks. Step up, guys.’ I felt like I was ready to run through a brick wall.”

He also talked about how the stunt work was so demanding, it started to feel like real fighting. According to Rhodes, the repetition and intensity of the action scenes gave him a deeper appreciation for storytelling—and improved his performance in the wrestling ring.

“Those fights… it started to feel like, are we fighting anybody for real? Because these are intense. ‘Go again. Go again. Go again.’ Just a really wild situation.”

Street Fighter is set to release on October 16, 2026, and with names like Cody Rhodes, 50 Cent, and Roman Reigns attached, fans are already expecting big things. But for Rhodes, the experience has already paid off—long before the movie hits theaters.

“Being on that set made me a better pro wrestler… they weren’t getting away with, ‘Hey, just put them in the costume and have them stand there.’ No off days.”

Whether or not the film becomes a major box office hit, Rhodes’ personal evolution might be the real story—and it sounds like he brought a whole new level of intensity back to WWE with him.

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