Cody Rhodes Says Pitched Stardust Mask Was Like A “Condom Blowing Up”
Cody Rhodes almost had a very unfortunate Stardust mask in WWE.
Cody Rhodes is a man reborn since returning to WWE in 2022 at WrestleMania 38 and is still looking to be on course to finish his story and finally capture the WWE Championship down the line. But only a few years ago, his fortunes looked very different in the company as he was portraying Stardust.
Speaking to Dale Download with Dale Earnhardt Jr, Cody Rhodes explained how the best way to improve your fortunes in WWE is still to get in the best shape you can and says it’s something he should have done when he was fighting portraying the Stardust character in his first run in the company:
“The biggest way to turn your fortunes around is to get in the best shape of your career. It’s still a vanity business. You’re still out there, half-naked, oiled up, and the guys behind the operation still have a love for bodybuilding. They’re in great shape and in custom suits.
“That’s one of the first things I tell people, because it helps the mindset too, ‘get in the best possible shape.’ Had I gotten in the best possible shape in my career and been like, ‘I’m telling you I want to be Cody Rhodes and not Stardust, let me get new gear and present that to you. Let me have this all done up.’ Instead of doing that, I just bottled. I let it swell.
“I thought, ‘if I do that, I still won’t (be pushed).’ That’s not the case. You get in the best shape of your career, it turns heads. If Stardust had 8% body fat and a six-pack and shredded and was handsome, they might be like, ‘What are we doing in this outfit?'”
“It looked like a condom meets Electro” – Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes then revealed that as well as his Stardust face paint, he almost had a mask as well that could have left him as the butt of the joke:
“At one point, I had the paint, but there was an actual mask that was pitched. This was an area where I spoke up. I put it on and it’s like a classic condom blowing up. It looked so bad. I get there is an element of humor to what I’m going to do, but they have to be laughing with you, they can’t be laughing at you.
“It looked like a condom meets Electro from the Spider-Man comics. I told Vince [Vince McMahon], ‘I can’t do the mask it looks so bad.’ I went and shaved my head like Dustin. I’m glad the mask never saw the light of day. Stardust had some milestones, and I did go into it committed to try and change it, but it wasn’t going to get me anywhere.”
Thankfully, it looks like the mask, face paint, and Stardust suit will remain locked away, even if Cody Rhodes does break out the odd cartwheel for old times’ sake in some of his matches.