Should Cody Rhodes Turn Heel at WrestleMania?
Ever since making his spectacular return to WWE at WrestleMania 38 in 2022, Cody Rhodes has gone on to become arguably WWE’s most successful pure babyface in decades. The American Nightmare immediately assumed a spot at the top of the card, something he strived for but never achieved throughout his initial run with the company, which ended in 2016. After forming AEW and causing a stir in the wrestling business unlike anything seen since WCW was in its pomp in the 1990s, the Georgia-native made his triumphant return home and went on to become the biggest star in the company.
Rhodes has headlined each of the last three WrestleManias, facing Roman Reigns in back-to-back blockbusters in 2023 and 2024, before losing the undisputed WWE Championship to the veteran John Cena in Las Vegas last year. However, fast forward to 2026, and the landscape looks much different for the former two-time WWE Champion. For the first time since returning to the company four years ago, fan reaction seems to have turned, with him now garnering a “mixed” response from the WWE Universe, akin to the one John Cena received throughout his run at the top.
To make matters worse, Rhodes recently surrendered his WWE Championship to Drew McIntyre on the January 9th episode of SmackDown, but even in defeat, fans have failed to rally behind the American Nightmare as one might have expected. With boos already ringing down in arenas around the world, has the time come to pull the trigger on a Cody Rhodes heel turn?
Roman Reigns Trilogy Plans Put on Ice
All year long, it seemed as though WWE was gearing up for the third installment of Roman Reigns vs Cody Rhodes on the Grandest Stage of them all. The last two times these two superstars closed out the biggest show of the year did huge numbers in terms of revenue, viewership, and match quality, with Reigns upsetting the odds to retain his title in Los Angeles in 2023, only for Rhodes to get his redemption a year later in Philadelphia.
When the Tribal Chief was installed as an overwhelming betting favorite to win the Royal Rumble last month, it seemed as though that was the clear plan. Online betting sites had Reigns installed as an 11/10 frontrunner to reign supreme in Saudi Arabia, with his closest rival for the victory out at 5/1. And if that doesn’t sound like a huge difference, then the below betting tool should prove otherwise.
Screenshots sourced from this comprehensive betting calculator: https://thunderpick.io/betting-calculators/betting-odds-calculator
A $100 bet on Reigns winning the Rumble would have paid $110. The same bet on the next best-priced star, meanwhile, would have paid $500. And ultimately, those odds were bang on the money.
Reigns duly won the Rumble, outlasting 29 other men to punch his ticket to the main event of WrestleMania. But with many expecting Rhodes to reclaim the WWE Championship from McIntyre to set up the trilogy with Reigns, WWE swerved all of us. Instead, Reigns unexpectedly opted to face World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk at WrestleMania in a truly mouthwatering clash. But where does this leave Rhodes?
Cody Rhodes vs Drew McIntyre?
The obvious option now seems to be Cody Rhodes attempting to reclaim the WWE Championship from McIntyre at WrestleMania in a match that will almost certainly not be the main event, with Punk vs. Reigns preferred. But even if that is the plan, WWE has a huge problem on its hands.
The American Nightmare isn’t garnering the reactions from the WWE Universe that he once did. When he embarked on those back-to-back main events opposite the Tribal Chief, Rhodes was the beloved hero attempting to reclaim the title from the dictatorial champion. Now, even though champion McIntyre is portrayed as the villain and challenger Rhodes as the hero, fans aren’t responding in kind. They now boo Rhodes, and the most likely reason for that is overexposure.
He has been a cornerstone of WWE for the last four years, featuring prominently on SmackDown, as well as closing out most pay-per-views. Over time, that gets stale. Add to that the fact that there has been very little character development since he made his triumphant return in Dallas four years ago, and all roads are seemingly pointing in one direction.
Turning Rhodes Heel
Surely the only option from here is turning Rhodes’ heel, and what better way to do so than on the grandest stage of them all. WWE board member Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson famously pushed for a Rhodes heel turn in the build-up to last year’s WrestleMania, only for Rhodes to reject the proposal. Instead, John Cena turned to the dark side in a genuine shocker before going on to claim the title from Rhodes in Las Vegas. Now, it’s Cody’s turn.
A potential heel turn would solve many problems WWE is currently facing. Rhodes is already getting booed by the WWE Universe, so why not lean into that as opposed to forcing this sympathetic hero character down their throats? Also, it would give Rhodes the chance to give his character a long-overdue facelift, perhaps even attempting to create the long-awaited ‘CodyLander’ villain, inspired by the hit show “The Boys” and the fearsome Homelander.
WWE has options right now. But surely completing the heel turn is better than allowing Rhodes to get even staler, resulting in an apathy that even Cody Rhodes may not recover from.
