WWE Champ Cody Rhodes Reflects On 'Awful' Stardust Gimmick

It's no secret Cody Rhodes wasn't very fond of the Stardust gimmick that WWE wanted him to portray on television during his first run with the company. Since his return at WrestleMania 38, "The American Nightmare" has spoken on numerous occasions about being frustrated with the creative direction and lack of seriousness of his persona, which would eventually lead him to ask for his release from WWE in 2016. 

Rhodes has reflected on his Stardust days as the building blocks for the success that he's achieved now but still views the character as the lowest point of his career. Speaking on "Flagrant," Rhodes voiced regret over not standing up for himself and took responsibility for being tied to Stardust for so long. 

"During the younger run, I wasn't speaking up — it's awful, man, awful, and it actually was okay. Like crowds were kind of fun with it. We won the tag titles, there's some significant moments, but it wasn't it. Absolutely some of the behind-the-scenes aspects out of my control weren't my fault and this was something I had been tasked to do and I did give it my 110%. However, I found that a lot of it was on was on me," said Rhodes.

Cody Rhodes explained how advocating for yourself outside of the ring in WWE can benefit a wrestler's growth long-term. Although he understands how to achieve that philosophy now, he wasn't as aware during his days as Stardust. 

"Wrestling is the suspension of disbelief, it's entertainment, we have writers, we have our show, whatever it may be. However, it's a lot more fair than people think. If you put yourself in the best of shape, if you invest in your gimmick or your character, if you work on your promos, if you are the go-getter who goes, and especially in this era of social media, if you go out and you create a little empire or you work with the digital teams. Again, small bones if you just take advantage of all that, somebody sees it eventually and that's where things can pick up for you and I wasn't doing all that." 

Rhodes also shared an embarrassing request given to him by WWE for the original iteration of Stardust, explaining that he was supposed to wear a hat/mask that unfortunately also looked like a condom. WWE's creative team eventually agreed that Rhodes need not wear the mask, but requested that he cut his hair which the former AEW star was devastated about at the time.  

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Flagrant" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.