Early Life
Cody Runnels was born on June 30, 1985, in Marietta, Georgia. He is the son of legendary professional wrestler Dusty Rhodes and his second wife, Michelle Rubio. Cody competed as an amateur wrestler in high school and won the Georgia state tournament at 189 lbs in his junior and senior years.
After graduating high school Cody attended acting school. However, he soon changed his mind about his career choice and began training to be a professional wrestler.
First WWE Run
Cody made his televised debut on July 2, 2007, in a backstage segment with his father, Dusty Rhodes, and Randy Orton. This segment was the start of a feud between Randy and Cody, though the two of them wouldn’t be enemies for long. In November 2008, Randy, Cody, and Ted DiBiase Jr. formed a stable called The Legacy.
Cody would try on several interesting gimmicks during his first run in WWE, including Dashing and Undashing Cody Rhodes and his time as a Rhodes Scholar. Without a doubt, though, the most bizarre gimmick in Cody’s career was the eccentric, glittery Stardust. During his time as Stardust, Cody teamed up with his older brother, Dustin Rhodes, whose WWE gimmick was Goldust.
Independent Career
On May 21, 2016, Cody requested his release from WWE and was granted it a day later. Upon his departure, he expressed no ill will toward WWE but simply felt he wasn’t reaching his full potential.
Cody began to wrestle across the independent circuit in promotions such as PWG, WCPW, and ROH. It was in ROH where Cody would first cross paths with the Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson), who invited Rhodes into Bullet Club.
Cody went on to compete in NJPW alongside Bullet Club. In 2018, Cody attacked the faction’s leader, Kenny Omega, and sparked the Bullet Club Civil War. The feud lasted the next several months and ended with Cody and the Elite making amends.
All Elite Wrestling
On January 1, 2019, Cody and the Young Bucks unveiled their new wrestling promotion, AEW. They revealed that the three of them (and Kenny Omega) would serve as EVPs for the new company.
Cody began his run in AEW as the most popular babyface in the company. He feuded with stars like Chris Jericho and his former protege, MJF.
At Double or Nothing 2020, Cody defeated Lance Archer to become the inaugural TNT Champion. He defended the title weekly against stars like Jungle Boy, Marq Quen, Sonny Kiss, and Eddie Kingston. His most predominant feud for the TNT Championship was against Brodie Lee, to whom Cody lost the title before gaining it back.
In 2021, Cody’s momentum in AEW began to falter. His storylines became convoluted and awkward, which caused fans to grow disillusioned with him. On February 15, 2022, news broke that Cody had parted ways with AEW.
WWE Return
On the first night of WrestleMania 38, Cody Rhodes made his surprise return to WWE to take on Seth Rollins. From then on, Cody would be a top babyface in WWE. Unfortunately, he sustained a pectoral injury right before Hell in a Cell but miraculously fought in his rematch with Rollins and won. Cody then took time off to get surgery and recover.
Cody returned to action just in time to win the 2023 Royal Rumble, which earned him a shot at Roman Reigns’ Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. Cody had the entire WWE universe behind him heading into WrestleMania 39, but to the shock of everyone in attendance, Cody lost the bout.
