Cody Rhodes: A Union In Wrestling Would Destroy Wrestling

In an interview with Breaking Kayfabe (via Wrestling Inc), Cody Rhodes spoke about how AEW will handle wrestler pay and his opinion that a union in wrestling would do more harm than good. Here are highlights:

On wrestlers’ pay in AEW: “I spoke about this at the rally and I mean it – my father was my favorite actor ever, if that makes any sense. He was a pro wrestler but I thought he was on the level as some of the greatest actors in film and on television, and I always remember him telling me, amongst comparable influence, a guy just as big as a celebrity, wrestlers are always the least paid. And I want to change that. There’s this corny outlook on the industry, this hot dog, handshake BS, that people think, if we move away from that, the system’s gonna blow up. I disagree. I think happy wrestlers only encourages happy fans and you have to up the profile.”

On a wrestling union: “I’ll hit this right on the head, there’s been talk in wrestling – people say the word, ‘union’ a lot. A union in wrestling would destroy wrestling because it’s not there at the price point yet. You’ve got to continue to up the profile. You have to take these baby steps, and a baby step is a talent feedback system, a baby step is a player’s league, a body where there’s a transparent line of communication between your office and your talent about what they like, what they don’t like, the travel, the catering, everything to the booking – it’s got to be there. The resource for wrestling is professional wrestlers but they have to be nurtured, taken care of.”