Cody Rhodes Weighs In On Brother Dustin's Controversial WWE Character, Goldust

Once upon a time, fans might've used the word "underrated" to describe Dustin Rhodes, but not anymore. These days, Rhodes is usually rated right where he belongs — among the most essential and intriguing stars of WWE's Attitude Era. Rhodes has been removed from the Goldust character for 12 years now — mainly because he legally can't use it — but it still stirs debate as to whether Rhodes enjoyed playing the Goldust character.

On "Flagrant," his half-brother, WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes, shared his opinion as to what Dustin may think of Goldust.

"It really depends on the day you ask him," Rhodes said. "I know he's extremely proud of it. One of the cooler moments when I realized, no matter how bombastic and ridiculous and 'out there' the Goldust character was, I watched that Roddy Piper match ... it was one of the bigger stories of WrestleMania 12. And my dad, who hadn't talked to Dustin at that point for three of four years, I could see him just smiling. Ear-to-ear. And he was so happy he got that moment. And he went out and did it on his own."

The elder Rhodes brother evolved the Goldust character over time, from something of an anthropomorphic Oscar statue to The Artist Formerly Known as Goldust, to a man suffering from electrocution-induced Tourette's Syndrome. At various points throughout his WWE run, Rhodes occasionally reverted to using his own name, which he continues to do in AEW, the company he joined in 2019. There, he and Cody put on a masterclass of blood-soaked ringcraft at Double or Nothing 2019 before Cody left for WWE. 

Now, reports suggest Dustin Rhodes is working without a contract in AEW, despite holding dual championships in AEW's sister promotion, ROH.