Dustin Rhodes is one of the most respected wrestlers in the industry following his success as Goldust. The time spent in WWE as Goldust is what most fans remember first, but he had stints in WCW, TNA, and now AEW without the gimmick. Rhodes has now wrestled in five different decades after another solid year in 2020.
Any wrestler to have that much time in the business is bound to have some fascinating stories behind the scenes. Dustin clearly worked with enough promotions and talents to have the tidbits that provide entertainment in a way only wrestling can. Find out more Dustin aka Goldust with the best backstage stories from his career.
10 Razor Ramon Was Supposed To Have Roddy Piper's Spot Vs Him At WM 12
One of the biggest WrestleMania changes that flew under the radar came at WrestleMania 12. Goldust was initially meant to face Razor Ramon in the Hollywood Backlot Brawl as the unofficial first cinematic match to culminate their rivalry.
The decision of Scot Hall to leave WWE for WCW saw him pulled from the match during WrestleMania season. Roddy Piper was the biggest available name for the role and he likely did a better job than Hall would have in the situation.
9 Accepted Goldust Gimmick Without Knowing What It Was
Dustin Rhodes badly wanted another chance in WWE to break out of the shadow of his father. Vince McMahon pitched the idea of Goldust when trying to come up with the right gimmick for Dustin in his return.
The term “androgynous” was used by Vince to describe the layers to the gimmick. Dustin agreed to the character even though he had no idea what the term was. The realization didn’t come until he looked at a dictionary later that day to realize it would be a risqué gimmick for the time.
8 Goldust Gimmick Was Originally Meant To Be Movie Buff
The initial intent of the Goldust gimmick was inspired by Vince McMahon wanting a movie buff character. Vince’s first concept was having someone play into having the passion for cinema as the intent of the promos.
Goldust eventually merged into something more when Vince talked to Dustin about the idea and wanted to push the envelope. The promos referencing movies were still part of the Goldust gimmick, but the mystery of his sexuality became the bigger takeaway to fans.
7 Didn't Follow Script During Segments With R-Truth
Dustin Rhodes didn’t have many opportunities towards the end of his most recent WWE run as Goldust. The most television time given to him came when he entered a short-term odd couple tag team with R-Truth.
Multiple backstage segments were filmed to showcase the comedic element of the two wacky characters interacting. Dustin revealed that he still went against the script on a few occasions despite the current WWE landscape of wrestlers having their promos completely written out for them.
6 Cody Was Unhappy About Teaming With Him
The tag team run of Goldust and Cody Rhodes entertained fans for a few months following the incredible feud with The Shield. Both Rhodes brothers were performing at a high level, but one of them wanted to change.
Cody hoped to become a top tier singles star and wasn't a fan of having to team with his older brother. Dustin and Cody were not close at the time as they grew up in different homes and had little contact for years. Cody ended up appreciating his time working with Dustin more after his WWE run ended which inspired him to invite Dustin to AEW.
5 Was Livid About WWE Not Having Match With Cody At WM
Cody Rhodes eventually transitioned to the Stardust character playing a different version of Dustin’s Goldust gimmick. The duo eventually split up with Stardust playing the heel wanting to get out of his older brother’s shadow.
Dustin badly wanted to have the emotional blowoff match on the biggest stage at WrestleMania 31. A disappointing match at Fastlane saw the feud ending in lackluster fashion. Stardust moved into the Intercontinental Championship ladder match and Goldust was upset about being an afterthought in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
4 WWE Didn't Expect To Rehire Him After Randy Orton Match
The storyline teaming up with Cody Rhodes wasn’t meant to be a long-term plan for Goldust in WWE. Dustin returned to play a mix of the Goldust character and himself standing up for the Rhodes family against The Authority.
Cody was fired as part of the script for not falling in line with The Authority and suffering a defeat to Randy Orton. Goldust faced Orton with a chance to win his brother’s job back but lost in a great outing. WWE was so impressed that they wanted both Rhodes brothers back in a tag team earning jobs together with Dusty in their corner against The Shield.
3 Wanted To Get Breast Implants
Vince McMahon was unsure of how wild he wanted to get with the Goldust character when he started to get over. We can assume we never thought he'd be asked by Dustin Rhodes whether or not he could get breast implants.
Dustin's hope was that fans would be more confused by Goldust and that it would get him more interest as such a unique character. Vince McMahon refused the idea before Dustin could agree to making such a drastic change for the gimmick.
2 Turner Demanded WCW Drop Seven Gimmick Before Debuting
Vince Russo played a huge role in the success of the Goldust character and wanted Dustin Rhodes on the WCW roster when he took over. Dustin returned to WCW in 1999 with vignettes airing teasing the new character of Seven.
The strange segments saw Dustin outside of the windows of children staring at them late at night. Turner Broadcasting’s standards and practices team informed Russo they wanted the gimmick dropped due to the potential implication of him being a child abductor. Dustin debuted with the Seven gimmick but cut a worked shoot promo saying he was done with the crappy gimmicks to reintroduce himself.
1 Serenaded Ex-Wife Terri Runnels In Embarrassing Moment
WWE still has yet to have another instance of the roster falling apart as much as it did during the infamous Plane Ride from Hell. Various wrestlers got into fights and scuffles, but Dustin Rhodes decided to have his drunk actions take him in another route.
The marriage between Dustin and Terri Runnels had ended a few years prior making it an awkward situation for them to work together. Dustin decided to serenade Terri on the plane microphone and used insulting lyrics that got him heat backstage for being so unprofessional.