ATLANTA — Cody Rhodes greeted family, friends and fans at the premiere of his documentary, American Nightmare: Becoming Cody Rhodes. The documentary tracks his journey from his high school wrestling days to wrestling professionally in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
But Cody's story didn't start on the red carpet at a Metro Atlanta movie theater. It started not too far away, in Marietta.
"I was just enamored at the time at how cool it was to have Dusty and be around Dusty," Cody said. "Had you asked him, he was locked in. From the moment I was in high school and started having success with amateur wrestling, he was the biggest supporter truly.”
Dusty Rhodes was a professional wrestler, multi-time champion and instilled respect for the ring. He inspired his son, Cody, to follow suit. Cody would later become a two-time Georgia state champion in amateur wrestling at Lassiter High School. A couple of years later, Cody broke into WWE as a professional wrestler.
Matt Cardona, a friend Cody made during his first stint in WWE, said the two initially didn't get along. But after growing up in the business together, they've learned to lean on each other.
"We hated each other at first because I see this guy, he’s getting all this special treatment because he’s Dusty’s son," Cardona said. "He didn’t like me. We didn’t really like each other. We were super young. Now we're 38. That's a whole lifetime of not just growing up, but growing up in front of a live audience, in front of the people. So we grew up as men, as wrestlers, as friends."
Even through hard times, the son of the son of a plumber had to write a new chapter. Dusty passed away in 2015 and Cody left WWE in 2016. He would join several wrestling companies before charting his own course. He helped spark All Elite Wrestling in 2019. What someone might call a game-changing gamble, Cody's mentor and longtime Atlanta resident Diamond Dallas Page calls an inevitable rise.
"They weren't really gambles, because the one thing he's all about is work ethic," Page said. "His work ethic is second to none. There's nobody who's going to outwork him. If you didn’t see it that that kid was money right then, you were blind. He just had a natural instinct for it. The beautiful part of the story is, at some point, they never saw it, so he left. That took a lot of guts, and then he went out and made more money than he ever made on the independent scene.”
In 2022, Marietta's own came back to WWE, this time as the American Nightmare Cody Rhodes. He brought a new look, a new song and a new brand. But he still had the same old dream.
"Before he came back, Cody called me up," Cardona said. "I thought it was a Cody lie. He told me 'Yeah, Vince McMahon came to my house. They want me to come back.'"
Cardona said he had nothing but encouragement for his friend.
"There's only one first, the first guy to jump and he did it. He's gotta finish the story," Cardona said.
A new documentary will air on Peacock starting Monday, July 31 culminating Cody's quest to capture the WWE Championship, a title his father never won.
“All of our stories have one thing in common - and that’s persevering no matter what happens," friend and fellow WWE superstar Chelsea Green said. "I don’t care if I’m released, if I’m fired, if I jump from company to company, if I win a championship, if I don’t. We’re all just out here persevering and trying to be the best version of ourselves in wrestling and in life.”
Kevin Egan, the current WWE Monday Night Raw announcer and former Atlanta United broadcaster, said fans gravitate toward Cody's persona and the genuine way he comes across on television.
"Cody is just a tough human being all around with an incredible story," Egan said. "And when you package that with a guy that looks a million dollars in a three-piece suit, yet somehow finds a way to resonate with everybody - he’s the everyman in a lot of ways.”
Cody's family was on hand to celebrate his success so far since returning to WWE. His mother, sister and wife, Brandi Rhodes, stood by his side that night and for years before that.
“He wasn’t ever shy about telling me what his goals were and what he wanted his wrestling career to become," Brandi said. "Back then, it was a long way to go. But here we are, 10 years later, he’s in this great position. I’m a realist, and hard things happen. If everything was easy, there’d really be no high highs or low lows. It would just be a boring life.”
Cody and Brandi have one daughter, and Brandi is opening up a yoga and Pilates studio in Atlanta this fall. Looking back, the two are grateful for their circuitous route to this point. Whether it's the squared circle or the red carpet, Cody still has a few more chapters to write in his story.
"If you had given me the title of American Nightmare Cody Rhodes 10 years ago, it wouldn't have been the same," Cody said. "I needed all these failures, successes and individual experiences. I find myself in a position where I have to remind myself I'm very lucky, very lucky to be here, very lucky to live this type of life."