Cody Rhodes says he’s not interested in turning villain

Cody Rhodes had a memorable match against John Cena at WWE SummerSlam 2025. In the match, the two biggest superheroes the company had built in several decades collided in the main event of the second night. Rhodes finally won cleanly and respectfully against Cena in a showdown where both were established as two of the great faces within WWE.

However, during the build-up to the match, we could see a Cody Rhodes with somewhat heel attitudes for a fighter with such a marked heroic personality. That's why many fans were sure that the American Nightmare would make his heel turn during the fight.

In the latest episode of his podcast What do you wanna talk about?, Becky Lynch and Cody himself were talking about how well the Irishwoman's villainous change had worked. When asked if he would like to become a heel, the American Nightmare replied that it's not something he sees himself doing at this point in his career.

“I have a completely opposite perspective. In all these metrics, in all these parameters, I simply have no interest in being a villain. I don't know if I could do it. I don't know if my heart would be in it,” Rhodes admitted.

The heel turn doesn't come... for now.

Although it is evident that neither the wrestler nor the company intends to make the heel turn, the reality is that it is foreseen for the short and medium term. This means that, if Rhodes' heroic character starts to become repetitive, his fall to the dark side could become a reality. In addition, Cody Rhodes himself admitted in statements that sooner or later, his character on television would have to undergo a personality change.