Leaving AEW was the "easiest thing" he ever did, claims WWE Superstar Cody Rhodes

Cody Rhodes joined WWE in 2006, and after performing there for almost 10 years, he left the Stamford-based company in 2016 and worked for other wrestling promotions like ROH, NJPW, and IMPACT.

In 2019, All Elite Wrestling came into existence. The American Nightmare played a crucial role in the establishment and popularity of AEW, working as Executive Vice President and an in-ring performer in the newly launched company. But, to the shock of the pro wrestling world, Rhodes left the company in 2022 and returned to WWE, where he started his wrestling career.

Speaking to GQ, Cody Rhodes said that leaving AEW was the easiest thing he ever did as his decision was based on insurmountable personal issues. Rhodes added that he wanted to look back at his time in All Elite Wrestling for all the good reasons, so it was to move on.

"[Leaving AEW] was the easiest thing I ever did," Rhodes said. "And it's because I had a personal issue that I wasn't going through, over, or around. I was just going to steer clear of it. If anything, I wanted to look at what we had done at AEW and say, 'Amazing, what a wonderful time, a beautiful memory, and very special in every way. And now it's time to move on.'" [H/T Wrestling Inc]

The prodigal son expressed his happiness at being able to talk about his time in AEW in his recently released documentary American Nightmare: Becoming Cody Rhodes.

Cody Rhodes said that it might have ended in an unpleasant manner, but it was a wonderful period of his life.

"I was happy that we were able to talk about that specific time in my career in the documentary, because it's hard for fans to understand," Rhodes continued. "My time with AEW might have ended murky, but it didn't end on a bad note. It was a wonderful season of my life." [H/T Wrestling Inc]

Cody Rhodes talks about the possibility of WWE and AEW working together

During the same interview, Rhodes said that he does not see the potential of WWE and AEW working together in the future in any major capacity.

The American Nightmare added that his opinion stems from the fact that he is old and competitive.

"I don't see it," Rhodes stated. "Only because I'm the old competitive type, you know? That's your competition and you want to run the score up."[H/T WrestlingInc]

However, as per Rhodes, things might change in the future due to an increase in the cooperative spirit of the upcoming performers, and it cannot be predicted at this point.