5 Ways Cody Rhodes could turn heel in AEW
Drawing comparisons to the likes of John Cena and pre-Tribal Chief Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes is a character the fans have grown disgruntled with during the past year.
The early signs of dissent against The American Nightmare came through his first AEW TNT Championship reign, seemingly refusing to deviate from his outdated patriotic act.
The EVP progressed to the tournament's final to inaugurate the title and was due to clash with at-the-time unbeaten Lance Archer. Rhodes would emerge with the belt and thus halt the Murderhawk Monster's momentum.
His reign was steady, and he held an open challenge, much like the aforementioned John Cena. The goal of offering a platform for prospects like Darby Allin and Sonny Kiss ended in an excellent squash match against Brodie Lee.
The eventual putting over of the late icon was an excellent deterrent and did well to keep discontent at bay for a while. But after a second reign with the title and engaging in a USA vs. UK storyline with Olympic boxer Anthony Ogogo, resentment began to manifest itself abundantly.
Cody Rhodes appears to be self-aware and plays to the negative reactions, donning gear inspired by The Boys antagonist, Homelander, reaffirming his intention to stay babyface constantly.
It very much feels like Cody Rhodes could turn and take centre stage as the company's top heel, given the growing sentiment throughout the fanbase and absence of Kenny Omega leaving a vacancy.
But will it happen? And in what way should we see the turn present itself? Let's take a look at five scenarios where we could see the American Nightmare return.
#5 "Hollywood" Cody Rhodes leaves Arn Anderson and the Nightmare Family behind
Cody Rhodes has been backed by industry legend Arn Anderson and the rest of the Nightmare Family, a stable comprising the pair and family members like Dustin and Brandi Rhodes and prospects like Arn's son Brock Anderson and Lee Johnson.
During his feud with Malakai Black, where Cody suffered back-to-back losses, Arn grew frustrated with the former TNT Champion and attempted to put him through his paces with stablemates Lee Johnson and Brock Anderson.
Brock and Lee had also suffered losses to Black and were far from pleased with Cody believing he had gone "Hollywood" and forgotten about his friends.
It was an intriguing concept not to follow up on, the idea that Cody Rhodes had been so caught up in being a celebrity that he had either forgotten or neglected to care about his wrestling roots.
This would be an interesting thread to follow with Cody Rhodes' heel turn, circumventing the need for him to break his oath not to challenge for the world title.
Cody could decide he no longer needed friends. His success is his own, after all, and why should he share it?
We have seen names like The Rock and Hulk Hogan don Hollywood gimmicks to equate their persona to their star power. Cody could adopt the gimmick to coincide with his non-wrestling endeavors and feud with the likes of Brock Anderson and Lee Johnson, giving them the main event rub and platform.