When Cody Rhodes left WWE in 2016, his future in pro wrestling was far from certain. But the wrestler was determined to make it big without WWE’s machinery, and he did exactly that. Rhodes had impressive runs in Ring of Honor and TNA, winning the World Title with the former. Arguably, it was his stint in New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) that catapulted him into global stardom.
He joined NJPW in 2016, announcing himself as the newest member of The Bullet Club. He had several high-profile matches and even won the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship. However, it is his association with the faction that fans most remember him for. Bullet Club was an established stable that included various leaders over the years. However, Rhodes’s recent comments about the popular group have drawn ire from the fans.
Cody Rhodes Faces Criticism for Bold Bullet Club Claims
Founded in 2013, Bullet Club became one of the most prominent factions in pro wrestling. They were led by Finn Balor (fka Prince Devitt) at the height of their popularity and then saw AJ Styles take over as the leader. AEW star Kenny Omega also took over the reins just when Rhodes was finding his feet in NJPW.
While he was not considered the leader of the group at that time, he did become an important member later. Wrestling fans have argued over whether he added anything to the stable, but Rhodes believes he was responsible for the group being commercially successful.
Speaking on his “What Do You Wanna Talk About” podcast, he said, “I talk with AJ and Finn about this all the time. Bullet Club was so cool when Finn Balor was doing it. So cool when AJ Styles was doing it, but they weren’t like printing money. It wasn’t the money making enterprise. I joined, and it did start making money. However, it was the least cool thing ever.” Safe to say, his comments didn’t go down well with a section of the online wrestling community.
A fan took to X and posted, “Cody Rhodes is full of c*ap Finn Balor, AJ Styles and Kenny Omega made Bullet Club relevant and profitable.”
Fans were far from happy with Rhodes’s assessment, with one angry user noting, “Cody dead to me after today.”
Cody dead to me after today. https://t.co/DKGIB5QNmF
— Mengetsu #BLM 🇵🇷 (@MengetsuSetsuna) June 11, 2025
Balor was instrumental in founding the group alongside King Fale and later Karl Anderson and Tama Tonga. Bullet Club grew over the years with the likes of The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega joining them with AJ Styles as their leader.
Highlighting this, a fan noted, “The fact that he’s always trying to dismiss TYB and Kenny, shows what a narcissist piece of sh*t he is.”
Criticism continued to pour in, with fans reminding Rhodes that it was his association with the Bullet Club that propelled his career. A fan mentioned, “And bullet club saved Cody’s failing career.”
And bullet club saved Cody’s failing career
— Ace Corino (@CorinoAce) June 11, 2025
Another fan called out the claims of The American Nightmare, saying, “Cody is just too corporate now. To say Bullet Club wasn’t profitable is a lie. The best heel faction in NJPW for over a decade.”
Cody is just too corporate now . To say Bullet Club wasn’t profitable is a lie. The best heel faction in NJPW for over a decade .
— Zach Grill (@Zgrobbot) June 11, 2025
Rhodes might stand by his argument, but the fans aren’t having it. The Bullet Club not only put NJPW in the spotlight, but it also helped Rhodes become a more prominent star. His ‘American Nightmare’ gimmick first came into focus in NJPW as part of the faction. In fact, the group was so popular that WWE tried to capitalize on its name.
WWE Tried to Get Bullet Club Rights
Back in 2016, it was reported that WWE wanted to buy the Bullet Club logo and even tried to get all the rights of the faction. However, NJPW refused to sell, and WWE decided to have its version of the group.
Having signed AJ Styles, they aligned him with Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows, dubbing them as ‘The OC.’ Despite AJ getting a push as a result, the faction failed to gain the same popularity as its NJPW counterpart.
Inconsistent booking and not having proper factions to feud with led to the group being phased out over time.