Cody Rhodes Confirms WWE Is Making Temporary Neck Tattoos

From the moment Cody Rhodes had it done, his infamous Nightmare Family neck tattoo has proven to be controversial. Rhodes recently discussed the tattoo with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated.

Despite the prominence of the tattoo on his body, Rhodes told Barrasso that nobody in WWE has had a problem with it. The American Nightmare clearly expected some kind of backstage reaction to his new ink upon his return to the company — at the very least from his former Legacy stablemate Randy Orton.

"Vince hasn't said anything [negative] about the tattoo," Rhodes says. "I've been waiting for some of these guys who knew me back in the day to say something, specifically Bruce [Prichard] and Michael Hayes. Even Randy hasn't said anything, and that was a shock to me because I wasn't a tattoo guy and he was covered. But it's a good thing to have."

Not only did WWE not have an issue with the Nightmare Family tattoo — Cody Rhodes revealed to Barrasso that WWE is planning on monetizing it, something that his former employer, All Elite Wrestling, never ended up doing. Vince McMahon, on the other hand, has never seen a merchandising opportunity he didn't like, and Rhodes claims WWE will be selling temporary tattoos, allowing fans to wear his chosen symbol themselves in the future (without necessarily getting the permanent version).

"Temporary tattoos are going to be released by WWE Shop, and people now see it as an extension of me," Rhodes said. "That's what it is. When I was here before, everyone tried to tell me who I was. That wasn't a bad thing—I was searching, too. Now I'm reaching my final form. That's why I am sticking to my guns about my character, keeping it as close as possible to who I am. But I'll promise you this — I'm not getting another one."