Cody Rhodes isn’t shutting the door on finally becoming the bad guy. In fact, he sounds pretty open to it — and even Paul Heyman could potentially fit into the equation if WWE ever decides it’s time to pull the trigger.
Speaking on ESPN Radio’s Unsportsmanlike podcast, Rhodes was asked about potentially turning heel and aligning himself with Heyman. Cody immediately pointed to the unusual bond they already share because of Heyman’s history with his father, Dusty Rhodes.
“Oh, very interesting. I have a unique relationship with Mr. Heyman because of his relationship with my dad. And he actually just came on my podcast. It’s gonna air, I think, the week after Thanksgiving. But people ask me all the time why we get along. He has a really unique relationship and reputation in sports entertainment, pro wrestling, and in the podcast, we talked a lot about why it is, and there’s a sense of loyalty.”
As for actually turning heel, Cody isn’t fighting the idea. His position is basically that he’ll go wherever WWE needs him, although he thinks the whole babyface-versus-heel conversation has gotten a lot messier because different parts of the audience already see completely different versions of him. He even tried testing that recently by bragging about punting Randy Orton and adding a little extra nastiness to the delivery. There was just one problem — the crowd loved it.
“I’m really open. That’s the biggest thing that I tell people all the time. You’re gonna make that shift and you’re gonna go heel, or you stay babyface, whatever it is, whatever’s best for WWE. But we are starting to get into an area where if you think I’m a heel, then I’m already a heel. If you think I’m, you know, and I’m not trying to make it so that you can’t get what you want, but if you think I’m a heel, I might already be a heel because we have a whole other side of it that doesn’t think that.
“So, a very prime example. I went out there the other night, Friday, wherever we were, and I said, ‘And I loved punting Randy Orton. I loved it.’ And I tried to put a little growl in it. ‘I loved it.’ And they just cheered. And I thought, ‘Oh, I thought they were gonna boo.’ So you can’t. That’s the beautiful thing about our fans. There’s no wrong way to be a fan. You can’t guess which direction.”
That’s a pretty different conversation from where things stood around SummerSlam 2026. Back then, WWE deliberately played around with the possibility of Cody turning heel, but WrestleVotes Radio reported that it was essentially designed to mess with hardcore fans rather than set up an actual turn.
Cody is now openly imagining what that character could actually look like. Pairing with Heyman — or potentially somebody else — would change a lot about the Cody Rhodes fans currently see every week, and Cody suggested the heel version of himself probably wouldn’t be nearly as worried about staying out of trouble.
“To hit it on the head a little more specifically, if something like Heyman or someone else, me as a heel, would take a lot away from what I currently do, and it would probably add in its own way. I don’t wanna say we’d—it’s different. I think it looks different than people think.
“Here I am very worried about this Team Mexico, Team USA, the diplomacy involved. I don’t know if a bad version of me would be as worried. And in 2026, going into 2027, you can have a lot of outrage, a lot of cancellations. Heel Cody, I don’t think, makes it on Unsportsmanlike. I don’t know.”
So if anyone is waiting for Cody to outright promise a heel turn, they’re not getting that just yet. He’s leaving that call in WWE’s hands, specifically Triple H’s, and believes they’ll know when the right moment arrives.
“I’m very open to it. I think everyone in creative always, you know, Triple H is the one guiding the ship here. And I think when something like that, when it’s time, we won’t miss that opportunity. But if it’s never time, I’m sorry, I don’t know.”
For now, Cody seems perfectly comfortable letting people argue over whether he’s already showing flashes of a heel. The more interesting part is that he’s no longer talking about the idea like some distant hypothetical — he already has thoughts about how different that version of himself would be.
Would you rather see Cody Rhodes turn heel with Paul Heyman or go completely solo if WWE finally makes the change? Let us know what you think in the comments.
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.
