'Make sure no one knew,' Cody Rhodes details his exact reaction when WWE informed him of The Rock taking over his spot at WrestleMania XL

The former AEW EVP called it one of the toughest days he’s had in this business. But then, he revealed not being petulant knowing that he was penciled in to win the men’s Royal Rumble match later that night. Cody did win and he immediately reverted to Reigns while pointing at the ‘Mania sign. The following Friday on SmackDown, he told Roman he’d take everything away from him but not at WrestleMania.

I find out about the possibility of The Rock vs. Roman Reigns the day of the Royal Rumble and I had to leave that room head up and make sure no one knew what could possibly happen and probably one of the more difficult days I've ever had in the wrestling business. Cody Rhodes via Busted Open Radio podcast

Just then, The Rock’s music sent the Alabama crowd into frenzy only to learn that he’d whisper something in Rhodes’ ears before the latter walked out of the ring. Cody’s dreams were dashed and on the other hand, the Samoan stalwarts seemed pegged to thrown it down in Philadelphia. But thanks to an unprecedented uproar from the WWE Universe to forced the higher-ups to pivot back to the original plans.

Why The Rock felt that Cody Rhodes needed his spot back?

Just days before WrestleMania went down in the City of Brotherly Love, The Rock was asked how it was like behind the scenes. The 52-year-old said that when he went back to Hawaii after that SmackDown taping in Birmingham, he realized that they had upset a huge chunk of their fanbase by sabotaging Cody Rhodes‘ story.

As a result, The People’s Champ rechristened his alter-ego on television. And for the first time in nearly two decades, fans got to see what Dwayne Johnson, the actor, was like back in the 2000s. He was once again a cocky man, drawing inspiration from his Hollywood Rock persona.

Had it not been for the change in plans, the wrestling fraternity in 2024 would’ve stayed deprived of that menacing run Rock had in the lead-up to WrestleMania XL. At The Show of Shows, the Black Adam star competed in his first WWE match in eight years.