In recent months, fans have noticed that fewer and fewer house shows are being announced with the promotion sometimes leaving an entire weekend free of events, a stark change from the intense schedule from years prior. With the shows being previously described as “marginally profitable” by TKO President Mark Shapiro, WWE has cut back on the shows and will reportedly reduce the schedule even further in 2025.

Although the move can be viewed as a positive given that the wrestlers have to work fewer dates and get to spend more time at home, Rhodes can see both sides to the decision.

Speaking with Josh Martinez of Superstar Crossover, The American Nightmare first outlined the health benefits to wrestlers working fewer shows:

“Pros and cons. Pro is more time for rest and recovery. Modern WWE with all the medical protocols that exist, in terms of to have the best nutrition, to have the mental clarity and focus to be dialed in physically, we still very much are a, I guess toxic to a degree, there is a vanity element to professional wrestling and sports entertainment.

In terms of everyone’s preparation, that’s a good thing. In terms of being able to get that mental clarity and getting your time at home, but also be able to be locked in on work. To be able to get the best nutrition, the best recovery, especially.”

Continuing, Cody Rhodes also noted the drawbacks, stating that the only way all the stars can get better is to get the reps in front of live fans, which has since seen the opportunities reduced:

“The con for me is I only get better at wrestling by wrestling. That’s a con for me. How I can mitigate it is that I have the Nightmare Factory where we can wrestle and do things and train. Training for wrestling, I never believed in wrestling schools growing up because the only way you can really do wrestling is by wrestling in front of an audience.

You have to do it in front of an audience. That will be a challenge for me because I feel like I’ve slid into the prime of my career and I feel really great, but I know if I take some steps back in terms of that, I’m going to have to mitigate it some way.

I’m going to have to find, ‘How do I train for this if I’m not able to do Saturday-Sunday house shows heading into Monday Night Raw.’ I think the majority of the locker room and roster probably looks at it as a great thing, and from a company standpoint, business-wise, it makes the shows when they do come to your city more special versus just being a given. It’s mainly pro across the board, I just have to find a way to keep the wrestler in me wrestling.”

With fears that a notable WWE live event may have been cancelled, this has since been debunked.

Despite no longer being a part of the AEW roster, Rhodes has consistently praised the brand and wants to see it succeed. Although Bryan Danielson currently sits at the top of the division as the World Champion, a spot will soon open up as The American Dragon prepares for retirement. Also in the interview, Cody Rhodes named this AEW star as someone who could become the face of the division.