WWE Has Been Teasing Cody Rhodes as the Next ‘Paul Heyman Guy’ All Along
Has WWE been teasing Cody Rhodes as the next Paul Heyman Guy all along? Some subtle signs hint towards the possibility.
The WWE Hall of Famer has managed some high-profile stars, “Paul Heyman Guys,” over the years in the company. He ended his association with Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 41, and his long-time client and friend Brock Lesnar retired from in-ring competition following SummerSlam 2026.
Heyman is now managing the Vision (Bron Breakker, Austin Theory, Maxxine Dupri, and Logan Paul) on RAW. Absent member Bronson Reed also appears to be nearing a return. While it looks like he’s fully involved in Breakker’s feud with Oba Femi over who’s the future of WWE, the promotion might’ve been silently teasing Cody Rhodes as his next potential client.
Both Rhodes and WWE have dropped some subtle signs over the past two years, hinting that the American Nightmare could be the next Paul Heyman guy. Fans have also been calling for a Cody Rhodes heel turn for a while, and pairing him with Heyman could be the best way to pull it off.
After defeating Roman Reigns to become the Undisputed WWE Champion at WrestleMania 40, Cody Rhodes spoke to Jimmy Traina on the SI Media Podcast. During the conversation, he noted that in another lifetime, he could’ve been the best Paul Heyman Guy. He noted that there’s a part of him that likes the questionable decisions the Hall of Famer makes all the time.
“In another lifetime, I probably would have made the best Paul Heyman Guy. I probably could have been his absolute Ace. It just didn’t work out that way. It worked out that I was the adversary for his number one guy, Roman Reigns. There is part of me that looks at that, even with the questionable decisions that Mr. Heyman makes, part of me looks at that and goes, ‘that might have been fun. That might have been a good car to be in. That might have been a good person to lean over to right before one of the bigger moments in your life and have something to share.’
He also shared the same message in another interview, saying he’d like to be in Heyman’s orbit.
Paul Heyman Guys table from the WrestleMania 42 promo
Ahead of WrestleMania 42, WWE dropped a promotional teaser featuring Paul Heyman, Roman Reigns, Triple H, Brock Lesnar, CM Punk, and Cody Rhodes. Hall of Famer Bully Ray then pointed out on the Busted Open podcast that three stars at the table were associated with Heyman and speculated that Rhodes could be the next to join that list.
“Three Heyman guys at the table, Roman, Brock, and Punk, with the biggest baby face in the WWE, Cody Rhodes, or is he? I’m gonna say something right now that a lot of people may agree with. They might not agree with. Are we looking at a modern day Dangerous Alliance? Is this the time for Cody to join the rest of those Heyman guys? I don’t know.”
The Hall of Famer directly tells Cody Rhodes he’d eventually need the Wiseman
Paul Heyman got GUNTHER a spot on the SmackDown roster and a shot at the Undisputed WWE Championship for dealing with Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 42. Cody Rhodes was the champion at the time, and the Hall of Famer had a promo segment with him on the May 8, 2026, episode of the blue brand.
Cody Rhodes asked Paul Heyman if he was out of options after Brock Lesnar retired on him (which turned out to be fake), Roman Reigns wants nothing to do with him, and CM Punk discarded him. However, Heyman said, ” I’m not the one running out of options. Sooner or later, they all need the Wiseman,” implying that anyone, including Rhodes, might need his services in the future.
Cody Rhodes reveals Heyman had been advising/warning him about being champion
On the May 29, 2026, episode of WWE SmackDown, Cody Rhodes had a face-to-face confrontation with GUNTHER before his title defense against GUNTHER two nights later at Clash in Italy. The Ring General tried to get in Rhodes’ head before their match.
However, Cody Rhodes told GUNTHER that Paul Heyman warned him about the crushing weight of being the Undisputed WWE Champion. While it appears like Rhodes is brushing off Heyman’s warnings, it might also subtly hint that the Hall of Famer was actually feeding him the blueprint to navigate the championship pressure, keeping their strategic alliance hidden in plain sight.
“Mr. Heyman, the man who got this match for you, he used to tell me about all the things that would happen if I got this (the title), talk about the bandwidth I’d need, the directions that I’d be pulled in. He tried to intimidate me."
Cody Rhodes uses the Wiseman’s famous catchprase
The most recent hint towards Cody Rhodes being the next Paul Heyman Guy came on last week’s episode of WWE SmackDown. He confronted Randy Orton before their upcoming match at Sunday Night’s Main Event on September 6.
By the end of their war of words, Cody Rhodes gave Randy Orton a final warning, saying he’d be the one to kill the Legend Killer. However, how he finished his promo caused a lot of speculation, as he ended it with Paul Heyman’s iconic catchphrase, “It’s not a prediction, it’s a spoiler.”
“Take this as a moment with me trying to teach you something. Say you’re right, say you go, and you win the 15th. Hell, maybe the 16th, maybe the 17th, maybe you break every record there is, maybe Randy Orton becomes the greatest of all time. But here’s what happens after: you still come back to me. The one who kills the Legend Killer is QB1. And Randy, that is not a prediction; it’s a spoiler,” Rhodes said.
With Cody Rhodes no longer holding the Undisputed WWE Championship, and his past coming back to haunt him in the form of Randy Orton, it could only be a matter of time before he finally snaps. When that happens, all these signs could eventually lead to the American Nightmare turning heel and becoming the next Paul Heyman Guy. It will be interesting to see if WWE wishes to pull this off in the coming days.
