We’re in some interesting times in wrestling right now.
We get a surprise announcement that The Rock was returning and making an appearance as “The Final Boss” on the February 21, 2025 episode of SmackDown.
Rumors begin swirling all over social media that a match or two was being cut to make room for whatever big was going to happen. And then we get… this segment.
I don’t think I’ve seen a segment send so much of the internet wrestling community into… complete confusion as to what the f*ck is going on!
I’m going to ignore the first part of that segment because it could’ve been an email. No shade. We’ll focus on the second half for the sake of this article.
The Rock wants Cody Rhodes to be his WWE Champion
The Rock brings out the WWE Champion, Cody Rhodes, and starts buttering him up faster than a Concha fresh out the oven!
He goes into this whole thing where he says that him and Cody Rhodes have actually become good friends now, talked about their last time appearing on screen, how good of a champion Cody’s been, and all that good stuff.
The Rock brings up the relationship between Cody Rhodes’ mom and The Rock’s mom.
He reminds him, again, that he’s the director of the board of the board of TKO (which owns WWE), his powerful business relationships, how many social media followers he has compared to Cody, and, most importantly, how powerful he is.
Because, of course.
Next thing you know, this man starts talking about wanting Cody to be “his champion.”
“Cody Rhodes, If you become my champion, I can open up doors and possibilities for you that you never knew existed! If you become my champion, every dream you’ve ever had, I can make come true. Every dream of your wife, of your little baby, who I know. I invited you to the premiere of Moana 2, in Hawai’i…”
“I met your family. They were amazing. You’re baby’s dreams, dreams, when you and I are no longer, we’re in the clouds walking, I could make all of that come true for you. I just need you to become my champion.”
“I will take you from here to here. I will make sure every dream you have comes true. Every desire comes true. You and generations behind you. Your dad, my dad, right now looking down, The American Dream & The Soul Man. They were friends. You and I are friends. Cody, be my champion…
“I don’t want you to answer me tonight. I want you to think about it….”
“I will meet you in Toronto, Canada at Elimination Chamber on March 1st. You give me your answer then.”
“Before I leave, I want you to know this. The thing I want more than anything in this world.. is that.”
[Cody] “This championship, my championship, their championship. This is what all of this… is all about?
[The Rock] “No my brother. I don’t want that. I want your soul.”
Fresh hell! The category is, “What in the fresh hell?!”
Why was The Rock going from face to heel every few minutes?! Why was he rambling like that?
Why was The Rock swirling around Cody Rhodes like he was glazing a cinnamon roll?!
See Cody better than me. I would’ve slid to left, slid to right, and cha cha slid on out that b*tch! Like, excuse me. Cody, get behind me! Expeditiously!
Why was he touching Cody’s neck and face like Cody was some cheesecake and he’s ready to play Twister!
This motherf**ka out here acting like wrestling’s Satan! I don’t know who got The Rock back on that SNL enhancement drug, Xentrex, but they need to be arrested immediately!
And why not go for the WWE Championship himself?
Well, I look at it this way. For one, The Rock is in his fifties now. I hope he forgives me for bringing that up. I know how touchy some people are with that. But, it’s the truth.
Usually, most wrestlers start slowing down or retire all together right around that point. Unless it’s Rey Mysterio. That man’s a wonder!
My point is, it’s unlikely that The Rock is able to wrestle full blown matches the way he used to. Now I could be wrong. Maybe he can. But even if he wanted to, it doesn’t mean he should.
On top of that, he’s kinda in between both worlds here. Wrestling & doing movies, action movies at that, which are physically demanding in their own right I’d imagine.
The Rock doesn’t strike me as someone that has a desire to completely abandon either.
So, I’m thinking this is a type of way for him to balance both and avoid getting anymore injuries that he would need major surgery for.
Now, this “I want your soul” thing was a bizarre way to do it. But, hey.
Here’s what I’m also thinking.
At this stage in his WWE career, the one thing better than being the WWE Champion is to own and have power over the WWE Champion, which is Cody Rhodes!
Gunther, or Goontha as we call him in the streets, is already a bad guy. So, that left Cody.
The Final Boss Needs One More Thing
The Rock had a whole game plan.
He buried the hatchet with Cody, talked with him more, hung out with him more, met his mom, wife, and kid, publicly gave him all the compliments in the world, made him feel all appreciated, offered to take him places and open all the doors he could ever ask for!
Cody was given his own security, private dressing room and catering (even if R-Truth still got in), a customized American Nightmare truck and everything. A whole preview of the life Cody could have.
All he had to do is just accept The Rock’s offer.
Congratulations! Here are your additional categories! Psychopath, Machiavellianism, and being a straight up devil!
Oh wait a minute, The Rock wasn’t done! Let’s get more psycho, shall we?!
“Cody, I had a little gift made for you and I been wearing it all week long. And you know, The Rock has been having great workouts in this belt that says “Cody’s soul.”
But, right here, you know this date [June 11, 2015]. This is the date that your daddy died, and this is the date that broke my heart because your daddy was one of my heroes.
Don’t break my heart again Cody Rhodes. I’m coming to Toronto. You give me your soul, and you make me—you make me embrace you as my champion.”
“I love you brother.”
This is where The Rock messed up! That moment right there! Oh but don’t worry, I’ll get to that.
WWE Elimination Chamber 2025: Cody Rhodes Gives Rock His Answer
Now, before I get to the last part, I wanna say this right quick.
2025 Elimination Chamber slid! It slid! Cleared! Every match did what it needed to do and more! I dare say that was the best Elimination Chamber of all time! That was really already solidified! But everything about the final segment further cemented that.
John Cena had just won the men’s Elimination Chamber match. Cody Rhodes comes out, The Rock (and rapper Travis Scott, for some reason) came out shortly after, and that’s where they took it to hell!
“Cody Rhodes, the moment has arrived. I will open my arms. You will come to me, you will embrace me as your brother, and I will embrace you as my champion.
“I want it all Cody. I want your mind. I want your soul. And God have mercy, I need your soul! If the answer is yes, then the American Nightmare will live forever!
Look me in the eyes. If your answer is no, then tonight, the dream dies… again.”
Let me explain something to y’all.
You remember when I told you The Rock messed up with that belt?
Well, I don’t know what they do in Charlotte, North Carolina, and I don’t know what they do in Atlanta. But, where I’m from, which is Memphis, bringing up family is about the quickest way to get you dealt with!
The Rock puts the day Cody’s father, Dusty Rhodes, passed away on a belt. Now he’s bringing his father up again?! Call me crazy, but it’s like he wanted to piss Cody off! Almost like he wanted him to say no!
But, that’s not even the half of it!
[Cody] “My soul no longer belongs to me. You know why? Because, I gave my soul to this ring and these people a long time ago!”
Here’s the other half of it. Can people change? Absolutely! The last few minutes of 2025’s Elimination Chamber is a literal case and point. But, some people’s soul just isn’t for sale.
Cody saw it. He saw all the special treatment, all the gifts. But, it didn’t really move him.
Now The Rock is many things, but I doubt that he’s an idiot.
I think somewhere along of lines of him building a “friendship” with Cody, he came to the conclusion that Cody giving him his soul was unlikely. Possible, but unlikely. So, he came with a backup plan.
Now what if Cody had said yes? I’m just going to assume that “The Final Boss” planned for that too. But, Cody made his decision. And he… made it clear!
“Hey Rock, Go F*ck yourself!”
When I tell you that part sent me into orbit! I might as well have been singing “Defying Gravity!”
And he said it hard with his entire chest too! Help!
Damn, Cody! I didn’t expect you to say no like that! Only thing missing was the glock!
All jokes aside, Cody saying no was pretty much inevitable, in my opinion.
And of course, Cody saying no was going to have consequences. Like getting attacked by a rapper (that’s there, just because) and a shocking, newly turned John Cena, for example. I hated that for Cody.
But Cody’s going to bounce back. He still left with his soul, and that’s most the important thing.
I can’t say exactly where all of this is headed. But, it’s going to be nothing short of cinema! Strap up!
