New information about Cody Rhodes’ departure from AEW has emerged.
Rhodes, a former AEW Executive Vice President who helped launch the company, left earlier this year, as it was revealed on February 15 that he and wife Brandi Rhodes left the promotion due to an inability to reach an agreement on a new contract. Then, at WrestleMania 38, Rhodes made a big comeback for WWE, defeating Seth Rollins in his first match for the company since May 2016.
In an update, Fightful Select reports that Warner Bros. Discovery officials made several attempts to convince Rhodes to stay with AEW.
Due to his work with AEW, the Rhodes To The Top reality show, and the Go Big Show, Rhodes had developed a good rapport with several people at WarnerMedia at the time.
Despite WWE officials believing it was a foregone conclusion, Rhodes’ WWE contract was reportedly not finalized until a few weeks before WrestleMania 38. As a result, following the Warner Bros. Discovery merger, there were inquiries made within the network to gauge Rhodes’ interest in staying at AEW, and those inquiries were completely separate from AEW.
Sam Linskey, the Associate General Manager and Senior Vice President of Scripted Original Programming for TNT, TBS, and TruTV, was among those who contacted Rhodes.
It was also stated that due to Rhodes’ connections across multiple WB shows, he and Brandi were contacted in mid-May to possibly participate in the Upfronts. There’s no word on whether this was related to AEW, the other shows, or a combination of the two, but Rhodes was already with WWE by the time the Upfronts took place on May 18.
There was no ill will between the two sides, and Rhodes told those who inquired that it was “time to leave the territory,” referring to AEW.
WBD officials stated that while they would have preferred Rhodes to stay with AEW, it was not a deal-breaker for their relationship with AEW. It was also mentioned that WBD officials have been pleased with AEW recently, particularly with their September ratings.
Rhodes has been sidelined since suffering a torn right pectoral tendon while training for his WWE Hell In a Cell victory over Rollins on June 5. It was reported that Rhodes would be out of action for approximately 9 months, putting him back in the storylines around the time of WrestleMania 39 Season in early 2023.
