Since leaving WWE last year, it can be argued that no one has been in greater demand worldwide than Cody Rhodes. Or the former Cody Rhodes, anyway. We’ll get to that. Not only has the former Stardust been booked in pretty much every independent promotion that can afford his booking fee, he has also managed to work across promotions that don’t generally allow that sort of thing.
Rhodes has worked — more or less concurrently — in Impact Wrestling, Ring of Honor, Evolve, New Japan, PWG, and others. Impact and ROH usually take great care to not cross the streams. Nor do Evolve and ROH. But I guess when you’re Cody Rhodes, you can pretty much do whatever you want.
While he’s been announced as “Cody Rhodes” in front of plenty of live crowds since leaving WWE (and has been advertised as “Cody Rhodes” for even more shows), WWE owns the “Rhodes” name … or at least they own “Cody Rhodes” as a trademarked name. As such, he hasn’t been allowed to be billed on television or video with the name he’s most known by. He’s generally referred to as “Cody” on-camera and on box art and so on. Sometimes “Cody R.”
Given how outspoken he’s been about his father’s legacy and the weight behind the family name, you’d think he’d hold some sort of grudge against the company that doesn’t let him be “Cody Rhodes,” right? According to what he told Sports Illustrated recently, that doesn’t appear to be the case.
“I’ll tell you this, and I’ve not told anyone this, but I don’t mind that WWE took away my last name. Deep down, in my bones, I definitely want it back – and I have plans to get it back – but there is something to being Cody. The longer I don’t have a last name, the more I’m OK with it. That’s not to say WWE is holding it ransom. It’s literally an intellectual property law that easily can be remedied, but there is something about being Cody that I don’t mind.
“There is something to not always reminding people of a show they’ve already seen, but instead embracing the one right in front of him. I am Cody, and I can promise you that the future is going to be even better than the past.”
Kudos to Cody for having such a level head about the whole thing, and such a positive and zen attitude about it. The name doesn’t make the wrestler, after all. Cody also said he was probably nearing the point where he would stop roaming and pick a home promotion. Nothing lasts forever. Click here to head over and check out the whole interview.
