WWE's Cody Rhodes On The Rock: 'Most Complicated Male Relationship I Have'

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Cody Rhodes have had a tumultuous run of on-screen interactions in recent years, from The Rock brutally attacking Rhodes on "WWE Raw" in 2024 to him claiming that he wants Rhodes' soul and facilitating John Cena turning heel on Rhodes last year in a storyline that has yet to be paid off. It's reached the point where Rhodes seems to be confused about their interactions behind the scenes as well, such as when he was invited by The Rock to the premier of the live-action "Moana" film.

"I'm always wondering why he invites me to these things, because it's like I'm the only one [from WWE] who gets invited, and are we going to fight? Are we hugging? We're hugging! Okay, yeah," Rhodes said during an appearance on the "Last Meals" podcast. "That's the most complicated male relationship I have in my life."

Rhodes explained that "Our families have been linked for longer than people see" and described the relationship between their families as a "territorial tie." He also mentioned that The Rock has personally known Rhodes' mother, Michelle Rubio, for years, and that Rubio and The Rock's mother, Ata Johnson, have a long standing relationship as well.

Rhodes also looked back on the storyline he had with The Rock ahead of WrestleMania XL.

"There's just a huge amount of reality with what happened at WrestleMania 40, him coming in, him taking my thing away, and me taking it back," he said. "[The Final Boss] is one of the best characters, and it's really untapped, that not only he ever did, but wrestling's ever had."

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Last Meals" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.