Real Reason Cody Rhodes Left AEW

AEW fans were shocked this week when it was revealed that Cody Rhodes has officially left the company. This followed news that his AEW contract had expired in late-December/early-January.

We now have a ton of follow-up regarding the Cody situation, including the real reason he left the company.

In an update from PWInsider, they state that Cody and AEW President Tony Khan could not come to an agreement due to differences in pay, which led to the end of the negotiations. It appears Khan was not willing to meet Rhodes’ demands, and Rhodes’ wasn’t willing to lower his demands to meet Khan’s offer, and no middle ground could be found.

According to the Wrestling Observer, talks fell through on Monday.

Another issue between the two parties was Cody’s loss of all responsibilities involving booking, with Tony Khan taking full rein when it comes to creative decisions. This was confirmed by Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated.

According to the initial Fightful report, Cody and his wife Brandi haven’t been as connected to the locker room in recent years in contrast to when AEW started, with word emerging that Cody had become distant from other EVPs. This made his decision to leave the company a little easier.