Cody Rhodes Talks WWE Contract, Rey Mysterio vs. Dom Speculation and AEW Rumors on MJF

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.

Rhodes Talks Retirement, Future with WWE

Cody Rhodes is the reigning WWE champion and at the peak of his career, but he suggested this week that retirement may be closer than most assumed.

During an appearance on All The Smoke with former NBA player Matt Barnes (h/t Steve Carrier of Ringside News), Rhodes divulged that his next contract with WWE may be his last as an active wrestler.

"What I'd say is probably my last contract with WWE, or the next contract I sign, will probably be my last—and I'll finish my days with WWE," Rhodes said. "It's the house that built me, and it's the house that brought me back and put me in this wonderful, wonderful position."

Cody did not offer a specific time or age at which he intends to step away from wrestling, but he did suggest that he has one in mind, saying, "You get to a point where there's only so much you can do, you can only go so long. And I think I know my number where I'd like to get with this."

Rhodes has two daughters with his wife, Brandi, and he mentioned wanting to spend time with them and be around for big moments in their lives as the driving force behind his eventual retirement.

The 40-year-old Rhodes is in the midst of his second reign as WWE champion, and aside from when Roman Reigns is around on a part-time schedule, he is the unquestioned face of the company.

Rhodes wanted to be in that position for many years, and in order to get there, he had to leave and play a sizable role in the creation of AEW, which is WWE's main competition in the pro wrestling world.

The American Nightmare returned to WWE at WrestleMania 38 and went on to headline WrestleMania 39 and 40 against Reigns, finally beating Roman for the WWE title at WrestleMania 40.

Rhodes was also in the main event of WrestleMania 41 against John Cena in the final WrestleMania match of Cena's illustrious career.

Every indication is that Rhodes will continue to be a top guy, championship contender and main eventer for as long as he wants to be, but with Cena retiring at the end of this year, it calls into question how long other stars like Cody will be around as well.

Rey Mysterio vs. Dominik Potentially Planned for Survivor Series

WWE intercontinental and AAA mega champion Dominik Mysterio had a confrontation with his legendary father, WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio, during Monday night's episode of Raw to possibly set up a massive match between them.

Rey has been out of action since the SmackDown before WrestleMania 41 due to injury, but he returned on Monday's Raw by interrupting Dominik and chiding him for disrespecting the legacy of lucha libre.

Things got physical between them when Dirty Dom threw a punch, and the segment ended when Rey hit his son with a 619.

Given that Survivor Series is set to take place in their hometown of San Diego on Nov. 29, Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Carrier) speculated that they will have a match against each other at that event.

Meltzer (h/t WrestleTalk) had previously reported that WWE was planning to have John Cena beat Dominik for the Intercontinental Championship at Survivor Series.

Perhaps WWE could have Dom pull double duty against Cena and Rey in separate IC and AAA mega title matches given how hugely over he would undoubtedly be in San Diego.

Otherwise, Dominik vs. Cena may be off the table, and the match against Rey could be for the IC title or potentially both the IC and AAA mega titles.

Ever since Dominik turned on Rey in 2022, they have faced each other many times in singles and tag team matches, including at WrestleMania.

However, if Rey and Dominik lock horns in San Diego at Survivor Series, it could arguably be the biggest match of both of their careers due to how beloved the Mysterio family is in that city.

Latest on MJF's AEW Return Timeline

MJF has not been seen on AEW programming since September, and it reportedly still isn't known for sure when he will be back.

At All Out on Sept. 20, MJF lost a Tables 'n' Tacks match to Mark Briscoe, potentially bringing an end to their heated, long-running rivalry.

Since then, MJF has been away doing filming for the upcoming Christmas movie Violent Night 2. Per Fightful Select (h/t Carrier), filming for the movie is wrapping up "relatively soon."

However, an exact AEW return date is unclear, and more acting could potentially be in MJF's future.

According to Fightful, MJF has caught "the acting bug," and spoken about how much he has enjoyed doing it.

MJF also recently starred in the hit comedy Happy Gilmore 2, playing one of Adam Sandler's sons in the movie. Before that, he had a small role in The Iron Claw, which was a biopic about the Von Erich wrestling family.

It can be argued that MJF is the top star in AEW and the company's best all-around performer, so when the time comes for him to return, it won't be a shock if he becomes AEW world champion for the second time in his career in short order.

MJF has a guaranteed title shot in his back pocket, and he feels like the best option to take the AEW World Championship from "Hangman" Adam Page in the near future.