What if Cody Rhodes never left WWE?

Nowadays, one of the biggest sources of rumors, speculation, and reporting from the wrestling world is All Elite Wrestling. The new company is the brainchild of Cody Rhodes. The grandson of a plumber did the unexpected when he asked for his release from WWE in 2016.

In doing so, he launched a second chapter to his career working with Ring of Honor, New Japan, Impact, and a variety of other smaller promotions, collecting no lesser titles than the ROH World Championship and NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship along the way. This part of his career transitioned to him working as a promoter in the tradition of his father, including teaming up with The Young Bucks to stage All In, which established a foundation for AEW.

In 2019, it’s hard to imagine a non-WWE wrestling world without the influence of Rhodes. But what if he hadn’t left WWE in 2016, but rather hung around for what—given his family name and skill—probably would have been a contract that lasted him the rest of wrestling days and perhaps beyond? This article takes a look at what might have been if Rhodes never left WWE.

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#5 The Return of Cody Rhodes

Cody Rhodes was stuck in the Stardust gimmick longer than he wanted to be--but it may not have lasted forever.

Cody Rhodes’s WWE legacy may be defined by his character work—going from a plucky young underdog face, to a key member of the heel Legacy faction, to Dashing, to a super villain, to a face anchored in his family tradition. For nearly the final two full years of his time with the company, however, Rhodes played Stardust.

Stardust looked an awful lot like a smaller version of his half brother Dustin’s Goldust gimmick, but without the edge or sexual overtones that had made that character ahead of its time. Stardust was eccentric with little direction, as he went from an oddball face to lower card heel.

Rhodes has openly talked about campaigning to drop the Stardust gimmick, which indeed felt like a dead end character with a mid-card ceiling. He has most notably indicated that he pitched playing Stardust on one brand and Cody on the other, and that the rejection of that concept was one of the last straws that made him ask for his release.

Had Rhodes remained with WWE indefinitely, we have to assume WWE would have eventually let him drop the gimmick, if only because it was low profile enough that there was little reason to keep him unhappy.

#4 A mid-card legacy

Cody Rhodes probably never would have broken the WWE mid-card glass ceiling.

Since leaving WWE, Cody Rhodes has collected world titles under the NWA and ROH brands, and been a main event level talent for smaller promotions around the wrestling world. In WWE, he had peaked a few times—in Legacy’s feud with DX, in teaming with Goldust against The Shield, and in his WrestleMania programs with Rey Mysterio and The Big Show.

Despite his work in these higher profile scenarios generally being well received, Rhodes never was able to break the glass ceiling. He wasn’t getting any younger and there’s a reason to believe he’d never re-attain even the aforementioned heights again.

So, Rhodes would go down as, at best, a mid-card guy and perhaps a fringe Hall of Fame inductee one day, about equally on account of his accomplishments as on his last name. The jury is still out on his long term legacy in the broader scheme of the wrestling business, but Rhodes’s story certainly got a lot more interesting for the choice to leave WWE.

#3 Kenny Omega in WWE

Without AEW in the mix, Kenny Omega may well be WWE bound.

Wrestling critics tend to agree that Kenny Omega is the best active talent today to have never worked on the WWE main roster. Yes, he was in WWE’s developmental system and has indicated he was unhappy with his opportunities there, which is certainly in a factor in him not signing with the company since. However, all indications are that WWE made every effort to sign Omega in recent months, including a big money offer.

In the absence of All Elite Wrestling, Omega may well have stayed in Japan. However, for the purposes of money and finally working on the most watched stage in wrestling, it’s hard to imagine Omega would have given WWE a shot were there not a legitimately fresh alternative on the table.

AEW represented the opportunity to build something new, and for Omega to do so with people that he was comfortable with, given his work with Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks in New Japan and Ring of Honor.

If Rhodes had never left WWE, he never would have started AEW, and the odds are that would have meant Omega on his way into WWE right about now.

#2 Inducting his brother into the Hall of Fame

Goldust will probably end up in the WWE Hall of Fame, and Cody Rhodes would have been the perfect choice to induct him.

Goldust was an ahead of his time character, not to mention that the worker beneath the gimmick—Dustin Runnels—is not only a talented worker, but a wrestler with remarkable longevity considering his now nearly three-decade career.

It would be a reach to call him a Hall of Fame headliner given he was never really treated as a main event guy and peaked as WWE Intercontinental Champion (and WCW United States Champion). However, the man’s talent and the iconic nature of the character mean that he’s all but a lock to go in at some point.

It would make complete sense for Cody Rhodes to induct his half brother into the Hall, given both their family connection and the stretches they spent working as tag team partners. Moreover, given that Goldust is closing in on 50 years of age, it’s fair to guess that he’s in the twilight of his in-ring career and may well get inducted within the next five years.

With Rhodes not only out of WWE, but promoting a prospective competitor, there’s little reason to think WWE would allow him to give an induction speech. Moreover, it will be interesting to see if his role in the wrestling world actually holds up his half brother from being inducted at all.

#1 A role at the Performance Center

Cody Rhodes could have been invaluable in coaching WWE prospects on character work.

Cody Rhodes was never a main event guy, and given the trajectory of his final years with the company, it doesn’t look like he was ever going to wind up in that spot. However, in WWE he did prove himself as an outstanding character wrestler who made the most of whatever gimmick WWE gave him.

He was a strong promo and perfectly competent worker, too, who generally kept his nose clean from any Wellness Policy issues, politicking, or other bad behavior.

All of this adds up to suggest that Rhodes may have enjoyed his greatest legacy in WWE not as a talent but as a trainer at the Performance Center. He may have been particularly adept at taking up his father’s old role teaching promo class. There’s a real argument that this would have been a waste of a good talent.

The presumably duel role Rhodes will take on as promoter and wrestler for All Elite Wrestling may well represent the best of both worlds, as he maxes out his potential on multiple levels of the wrestling business.