The Rock vs. Cody Rhodes: WWE Feud Individually Changes—Real Hatred or Just a Fantastic Story?
The “just one more WrestleMania storyline” has been launched, which has exploded into one of the most shocking rivalries seen by WWE in years. Cody Rhodes has now admitted that his quarrel with Rock in WrestleMania 40 was not completely scripted—the real bad blood has spread to real life.
And fans are still arguing: Is this the biggest story of WWE, or is the real hatred behind the curtain?
WrestleMania 40: When plans changed overnight
The original plan was simple—a blockbuster WrestleMania Main Program Rock vs. Roman regime. After winning the Royal Rumble, Kodi was asked to give his title shot. Fans revolted, WWE panicked, and everything changed.
Rock surprised the shocking heel at a warm east-kusti press conference in Las Vegas. When Rhodes made fun of the Anoa family, Kodi, who slapped the rock slapping in a moment, looked very real for the rest. Triple H and Seth Rollins had to move physically to cool things.
Behind the curtain: Kodi opens
Most of the fans thought that the slap was just one more scripted WWE stunt. But Kodi later confessed that the stress of dealing with Rock was far ahead of TV.
What do you want to talk about on your podcast? Rhodes messed up the quarrel with his head so badly that he goes on “stress shopping sprees.” He described stress with a rock “described as real as I ever experienced in wrestling.”
But the question of jealousy remains—was it part of all the act, or was their rivalry actually spread outside the ring?
The Fallout: Betrayal, victory and incomplete business
In WrestleMania 40, Rhodes and Rollins collided with Rock and Reigns in a tag-team war, which determined the stage for the coming time. Kodi eventually won a career-defining victory but was not cocky.
When John Cena shocked Rhodes in the Elimination Chamber 2025, Rhodes cheated on the way to Cody vs. Cena in Siding and WrestleMania 41.
Meanwhile, The Rock has been absent from WWE TV since then—but internal sources believe the rivalry with Cody is over.
Reality or story? The line becomes blurred
Rock vs. Cody Rhodes is not just another wrestling angle—this is a kind of quarrel that makes fans question where the story ends and the reality begins.
With wild moving emotions, the betrayal is shocking to the WWE universe, and the future is still uncertain. One thing is clear: it is a quarrel that can define the entire era of WWE.
