Cody Rhodes showed a much nastier side of himself against Randy Orton at Sunday Night’s Main Event, especially once the match completely fell apart. Naturally, that has fans wondering whether WWE is finally preparing to take The American Nightmare somewhere it has avoided taking him for years.
During a Q&A session, WrestleVotes was asked whether everything that happened with Orton could ultimately lead to Rhodes turning heel. As things currently stand, he hasn’t heard that a full turn is part of WWE’s plans.
“In the moment, don’t see a full heel turn for Cody Rhodes. It’s not in the cards. Haven’t heard it. There are many reasons for that.”
One of those reasons apparently goes well beyond whatever WWE could do with Rhodes creatively. WrestleVotes pointed to just how popular Cody remains with the fans who actually spend money on WWE merchandise, something the company’s internal numbers aren’t going to ignore.
“One being he is extremely popular with people who spend money on merchandise, and that goes a long way. The analytics matter.”
That popularity could make a full heel turn a very expensive creative decision. WrestleVotes doesn’t believe WWE is going to risk losing millions of dollars in business simply because turning Rhodes might make for an interesting television story.
“You’re not gonna take a guy like that and switch him and lose millions and millions of dollars for the benefit of the television. The story should come first, but that’s not how they think about it.”
That doesn’t necessarily mean fans should expect Cody to stay exactly the same. WrestleVotes left the door open for WWE to continue exploring the more aggressive version of Rhodes that showed up against Orton, just without actually pulling the trigger on a complete character change.
“A darker side, maybe.”
That possibility makes a lot more sense after what happened at Sunday Night’s Main Event. Rhodes and Orton started fighting before the bell and eventually turned their match into a violent mess that spilled through the crowd, involved Cody’s family and left Orton bleeding.
Rhodes became particularly aggressive once the referees started going down. He smashed Orton with the steel steps, repeatedly punched him while he was bloodied and connected with two Cross Rhodes before lining him up for a running kick while Orton was down on his hands and knees.
Orton put his hands up and begged Cody to stop, and Rhodes hesitated. That moment of mercy ended up costing him when Orton used the distraction to hit a low blow before dropping Rhodes with an RKO and stealing the win.
So the Cody fans saw on Sunday night may not disappear entirely. WWE apparently isn’t planning to turn one of its biggest merchandise sellers heel right now, but a darker American Nightmare could still give the company somewhere new to take him without sacrificing everything that comes with Cody remaining one of its top babyfaces.
Would you rather see Cody Rhodes fully turn heel, or is a darker version of his current character the better direction? Let us know 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.
