Cody Rhodes clarifies misconceptions regarding his role as an Executive Vice President and present-day talent of All Elite Wrestling.
When Cody Rhodes, Matt Jackson, Nick Jackson, and Kenny Omega became Executive Vice Presidents of a brand new wrestling promotion in 2019, AEW was working with a completely blank slate and an unlimited bucket list of dream circumstances while attempting to build a competitive alternative to WWE for the first time in nearly 20 years.
Two-and-a-half years later, AEW has grown by Leaps and Bounds and currently is the home promotion for Superstars such as Chris Jericho, Paul Wight, Bryan Danielson, CM Punk, Adam Cole, and more.
Cody Rhodes, who did not even have the rights to use his last name while wrestling when the promotion started, has undergone many changes in his own career and personal life since the start of the promotion. Currently, he is not allowed to challenge for the AEW World Championship due to a stipulation that he placed upon himself. In addition to that, he has become a father and has taken on more outside responsibilities in the world of entertainment such as being a judge on the Go Big Show on TBS.
Speaking with Monsters and Critics Reality, Cody Rhodes clarified what his role is as the Executive Vice President of Talent in AEW saying that while he is glad the promotion has picked up major names, he knows how good Bryan Danielson and CM Punk and be in the ring and it is his job to show the world who will be the stars of the next generation such as Ricky Starks and Darby Allin.
Rhodes also touched upon criticisms that he buries talent, saying that his track record shows otherwise.
"Well, that's technically my number one job at AEW as the Executive Vice President of Talent. That's the most important thing I already know that Bryan Danielson is famous, I already know that CM Punk is amazing in the ring, that Kenny Omega can have a five-star match, I know that. It's our job to show you who in five years, or three years, will be leading the charge and if you just look at some of the homegrown types with Ricky Starks, and MJF, and Private Party, and Lee Johnson, I mean, I could go on and on. It's vastly important,” says Cody.
“There's this online outlook on me [that suggests] that all I do is bury talent. Gosh, I feel like I spent three years introducing talent and I wrestled a pay-per-view against an absolute rookie. That's the job though. I love that part. Darby is somebody who's just blowing everyone away. I'm glad people get to see that side of Ricky and I think he will be, too, because Ricky presents himself as so confident and suave. But you can't forget that Ricky is new into our industry. He showed up for the TNT open challenge. He didn't win the match, but he won himself a job, and now, TV wrestling is far different than independent wrestling, and seeing Ricky navigate that space and emerge on such a level that he has -- I’m very proud of both those guys Darby and Ricky.”
Cody added, “Yeah, when he was standing in the ring for the open challenge -- so much. realness happens on Dynamite that people may not realize, but Arn [Anderson] just whispered in my ear, and he said, ‘He looks better than some of our guys, and he wasn't wrong. Then the next day, he was one of our guys. You know, Tony [Khan] always has the foresight to see somebody coming and Ricky was undeniable.”
In another recent interview, Cody Rhodes and Tony Khan spoke about the upside to Ricky Starks and how happy they were to see him gravitate towards the “Rhodes to the Top” reality show and how the reality show has allowed for a new side of his personality to shine through. Learn more here.
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