Brandi Rhodes On AEW Departure: What I Feared With That Company, I Was Seeing

Originally posted on Wrestlezone | By Hamish Woodward | Last updated 4/5/24

Brandi Rhodes has broken the silence over her leaving AEW.

Despite being instrumental in the company’s foundation, Brandi and her husband Cody Rhodes left the company in February 2022.

Cody promptly returned to the WWE at WrestleMania 38, facing Seth Rollins at the show. Brandi remained out of the spotlight, and has not returned to the wrestling business since then.

Speaking to Chris Vannini of The Athletic, Brandi Rhodes spoke about leaving AEW. She claimed that the company drifted “from the original vision”, as the company changed from what they first envisioned.

“What I feared with that company, I was seeing before my eyes. When you start to see things drift from the original vision and … I’ve seen this happen before, then you start to (think) this may not be what we thought it was.”

Cody Rhodes only said that he left the company due to a “personal issue”, which would track with what Brandi Rhodes said.

Brandi Rhodes Was Scapegoated After AEW Exit, Cody Rhodes Claims

Speaking on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Cody Rhodes claimed that Brandi Rhodes was “hugely scapegoated” after the pair’s departure from AEW.

“That woman got hugely scapegoated and hugely just misinformation, and everyone knows who they are that was involved. If ever there was a moment for her to just feel like a princess and feel like somebody who did a lot more for wrestling, there’s many people working at AEW who, she was the one who said their name. She was the name who wanted to keep them in the fold when something went wrong.”

“For how she was treated after the departure, and this is not by any company, just in general, it pissed me off to this day, and I look forward to just…she had a great experience last year at WrestleMania. She felt that love again, and I look forward to that just because I could not do this without her. Could not play this game. I know there’s no crying in wrestling. I think [Disco Inferno] said that, or Russo maybe, but I tend to cry. It’s okay.”