Cody Rhodes Pays Heartwarming Tribute to Late Andy ‘The Butcher’ Williams

Former Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes paid a heartwarming tribute to former AEW colleague Andy “The Butcher” Williams following the latter’s untimely passing this past weekend.

Back in 2019, The Butcher and The Blade made their AEW debuts by emerging through the ring and attacking Cody. Speaking with OutKick Dropick recently, Cody said he’s glad to play a role in one of the highlights of Williams’ pro wrestling career. He hailed The Butcher as a “truly special, intelligent, artistic, and beautiful” person. Here’s what Cody Rhodes said:

“When I was away from WWE, I actually — him and Blade and Bunny — we had recruited them to do this really fun debut. He came up under the ring, and they beat me up, and I definitely didn’t get to spend near enough time with him as a person. But all the things you’re hearing about him in terms of how warm and charismatic and interesting — not a guy that needed the gig, he had another gig and was super cultured and intelligent. And again, The Butcher, you see this big just the mustache and the tattoos and the muscles. Maybe if you had judged that book by its cover, you wouldn’t know how truly special, intelligent, artistic, and beautiful of a person that he was.

“I didn’t get to be around him near enough, but I’m really glad I was part of bringing him into that moment, and I wish everyone around him thinking about them and wish them the best. And they’re very much in my heart today. I told Brandi about that this morning, and just such a shock- so young. Beautiful person, and he leaves behind multiple locker rooms of people that he touched, that all of them 100 percent have a good memory and a good story about him.”

As noted, Andy Williams collapsed in the ring while wrestling at Enjoy Wrestling’s Five-Year Anniversary event on Saturday. The musician and pro wrestler was rushed to the hospital, where he was ultimately declared dead. Several wrestlers have since taken to social media to pay their tributes.