"I cannot overcome this"- Cody Rhodes gets candid about the "worst period" of his WWE career

Cody Rhodes has become one of the biggest WWE superstars of this generation. However, his journey to the top had it share of ups and downs. He was released by WWE in 2016 following his run. During that time, he had portrayed the character of Stardust, which was a face-painted iteration of his older brother, Dustin Rhodes’ captivating gimmick. However, it made Rhodes nothing but a mid-card comedic attraction and subsequently led to his exit from the company.Cody Rhodes says Stardust character was the worst period of his first WWE runIn a recent appearance on the Double Coverage Podcast, Cody Rhodes admitted that the Stardust character was something he was unable to overcome. He said, “The one area where I just thought, ‘No, I cannot overcome this. I can’t overcome it directly. I have to go a different route was stardust.’ Um, and that [clears throat] stardust is unfortunately all darkness.”Furthermore, The American Nightmare was extremely upfront in saying that portraying Stardust on television was the worst period of his WWE career.“Every now and then someone will try to ask me a question and like be funny about Stardust. And I always hit them with like, well, it was the worst period of my entire life. But yeah, like, and I don’t think they realize if it entertained you, great. I tried. We worked hard.That was the first time that it was it was all darkness. And is the first time, to your question, where I thought, I’m not going to make it. I’m not going to win a world title. Uh, I’m not going to make it”, said Rhodes.Cody Rhodes rebuilt himself on the independent circuit and, in his stint forming AEW, as the American Nightmare. He returned to WWE in 2022 as the mystery opponent of Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 38. Following that, Rhodes began his ascension to the top of the mountain, which led to him becoming a multi-time World Champion, WrestleMania main eventer, and one of the top attractions of this era.Cody Rhodes is set for a major match at WWE’s next Premium Live EventCody Rhodes will be a part of WWE’s next PLE, Crown Jewel 2026, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in November 7. He will battle his former mentor and heated nemesis in a Last Man Standing match. Both superstars have defeated each other once, setting the stage for their rubber match. So, it will be interesting to witness which one of them will be the last man standing at Crown Jewel.Also read: 4 WWE Crown Jewel 2026 shocking moments that can shake the landscapeGet the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.