What Do You Wanna Talk About? with Cody Rhodes x Fanatics

Guest: Kevin Owens

Episode Date: June 25, 2025

Episode Overview

In this special episode, Cody Rhodes sits down with Kevin Owens for a candid, deeply personal, and laughter-filled conversation at the Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky—far from their usual WWE tour bus setup. The duo, joined by Corey Graves (acting as moderator and contributor), delve into the inside world of wrestling, sharing untold locker room tales, their career paths, struggles, tender family moments, and hilarious road stories. This is a genuine celebration of friendship, evolution in the wrestling business, and life beyond the ropes.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Wrestling Friendships & Authenticity in the Business

• Cody and Kevin’s Real-Life Bond: Cody shares that Kevin is one of his real friends in wrestling—a rarity in the business, echoing his father’s wisdom about true friendships in wrestling (00:45).
• Workplace Proximity Associates (WPA): The concept of being TV “friends” versus real-life friends—Owens jokes about refusing to be forced into a TV friendship with Damian Priest during the pandemic era (03:01).
  • “They tried to make me be friends with Damian Priest on television—how'd it go? I refused.” – Kevin Owens [03:01]

2. Creative Integrity & Saying “No”

• Knowing When to Refuse Creative: Owens emphasizes the importance of being discerning about creative decisions, refusing storyline ideas that don’t fit his character or insult the audience’s intelligence (05:54).
  • “If I think the audience would be insulted by it ... I just didn’t like it. I think it was shit.” – Kevin Owens [06:45]
• Admiration for Owning Your Brand: Rhodes and Graves praise Owens for his integrity in guiding his own character and not saying yes to everything, something often undervalued in wrestling (05:01).

3. The Cody List – Life After WWE and the Indie Blueprint

• The Symbolism of the List: Discussion on Cody’s iconic “List” post-WWE, which galvanized fan interest and made every booked match—for even less-hyped opponents—feel important (10:01).
  • “Because you put it on the list ... that match became something people wanted to see.” – Kevin Owens [10:28]
• Pricing and Ethics on the Indies: Kevin and Cody contrast their approaches to indie bookings, stressing fair pricing for promoters and warning of the dangers of ex-WWE stars overestimating their draw (12:16, 13:00).
  • “Ex-WWE guys ... charged insane amounts of money ... which he might have gotten a couple times at first ... but it’s not sustainable.” – Kevin Owens [12:48]
• PWG Pay & Merch Sales: They reminisce about negotiating with Super Dragon and how the Bucks and Colt Cabana changed the merch game by pioneering print-on-demand with Pro Wrestling Tees (30:04).

4. How the Indie Scene Evolved: Who’s the Face Now?

• The New State of Indies: Owens asserts that today’s indies are fundamentally different (“there is no independent scene anymore ... or at least, not like it was”) due to major signings and fragmentation (34:25).
  • “It almost feels like there is no independent scene anymore.” – Kevin Owens [34:30]
• Cody on Matt Cardona: Cody (with some Owens ribbing) nominates Matt Cardona as the contemporary indie face, while Owens pokes fun at Cardona’s wrestler tan and his desire to return to WWE (36:35).

5. Locker Room Stories and Life Lessons

• Big Show Antics & Comedy in Wrestling: The famous “comedy” story where Cody learns to embrace entertaining the crowd—even if it means wrestling with a rubber chicken—on advice from Big Show (26:29).
  • “I told him, ‘I don’t want to do haha anymore’ ... He just kinda went like, says, ‘Okay, well can I tell you what to do then?’ I said, ‘Yes, please.’ ... He goes, ‘Well, get over then.’” – Cody Rhodes [26:29]
• NXT Beginnings & Dusty’s Influence: Owens describes his first interactions with Dusty Rhodes and how Dusty recognized Owens’ motivation to build a better life for his family (47:08).
  • “We spent an hour talking in that airport, just about life, about family... Not one word about wrestling.” – Kevin Owens [47:08]
• Parenting & Personal Growth: Both men reflect on how fatherhood changed their approach to wrestling and life, with Cody crediting his daughter Liberty for giving him a new “why” (48:22).
• Heart, Shin, or Head?: Kevin humorously ranks which wrestlers he’d take a bullet for and at what body part (55:13).

6. Candid Talk About Health & Injuries

• Owens’ Neck Injury: Open discussion on Kevin Owens’ ongoing battle with a serious neck and spinal cord injury—what the medical team is advising, the frustration of not knowing the surgery’s outcome, and anxieties about pain and returning to the ring (70:54).
  • “We're letting my spinal cord heal as much as we can on its own ... The last week, everything hit. So now ... I can't wait to get the surgery. Not just because I want to get back in the ring, just because I want to not be in pain.” – Kevin Owens [71:02, 72:44]

7. Giving Back, Memories, and Legacy

• Gift Exchange: Cody gifts Owens the actual “winged eagle” replica championship belt from his title run, signing it together—a symbolic gesture of friendship and shared legacy (78:24–79:16).
  • “That one’s yours ... That’s for you.” – Cody Rhodes [80:59]
• Bret Hart, Owen Hart, and Childhood Idols: Owens discusses his complex fandom, explaining he was an Owen Hart guy, not a Bret Hart guy, and how those early allegiances impacted his career dreams (82:16).
  • “Automatically, Shawn Michaels fan, Owen Hart fan. Can't really be a Bret Hart guy.” – Kevin Owens [83:59]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• “They tried to make me be friends with Damian Priest on television—how'd it go? I refused.” – Owens [03:01]
• “If I think the audience would be insulted by it ... I just didn’t like it. I think it was shit.” – Owens [06:45]
• “You know what I hate the most is ... [when] I go in the locker room, try to go to the restroom ... there's this layer of fake tanner!” – Owens on wrestler tans [37:36]
• “If your tan looks like it could rub off on someone else, it’s too much.” – Owens [37:34]
• “When I left I didn’t really ask anyone other than you ... how would you map this out?” – Rhodes to Owens on leaving WWE [09:01]
• “Colt created the Colt. I’m the reason why Pro Wrestling Tees exists.” – Owens [29:38]
• “You, Randy, Jimmy, Sammy, Finn, Becky ... all in the heart.” – Owens, on who he’d “take a bullet” for [56:13]
• “Consistency is actually sometimes plays against you. Because if you're too consistent, then it becomes normal.” – Owens [68:39]
• “We talked about making everything work ... [Miz] is the epitome of that.” – Owens on The Miz [65:32]
• “We did the ladder match, we had talked about ... you had said, like, my legs ... feel like they're dragging under me.” – Rhodes on Owens’ injury [74:02]

Highlights by Segment (Selected Timestamps)

00:45–07:14 — Friendly banter, “workplace proximity associates,” Owens tells the story of refusing to be Damian Priest’s “best friend” on TV.

09:01–15:16 — Cody’s WWE exit, Owens’ advice and influence, the making of “the List”; lessons about indie wrestling bookings.

29:02–34:16 — Indie scene evolution, how Owens, The Bucks, Colt and others shaped the modern wrestler-entrepreneur.

37:05–38:48 — Locker room pet peeves: fake tanner and shaving disasters.

47:08–51:41 — Dusty Rhodes’ mentorship, family motivations, and the realities of parenting as a wrestler.

62:17–65:00 — In-ring preparation styles: Cody vs. Kevin/Sami; the magic of working with different “processes”.

65:03–68:43 — The enduring value of The Miz and Natalya, and why being “consistently great” may be undervalued.

70:54–74:58 — Kevin’s neck injury: the diagnosis, impact, upcoming surgery, and personal reflections.

78:24–81:02 — Presentation and gifting of the “winged eagle” belt from Cody to Kevin.

82:16–84:47 — Childhood wrestling idols; Owens’ fandom of Owen Hart and Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart’s role in his life.

Final Reflections, Dream Teams, & Wrap-Up

• Dream Teams: Owens builds a fantasy Survivor Series team: Cody, Randy Orton, Sami Zayn, and Finn Bálor (89:08).
  • “Easy, dude. We smoke the field.” – Cody [89:51]
• Mount Rushmore of Jerseys: Owens’ picks: Stone Cold, Shawn Michaels, Randy Orton, Becky Lynch (85:42).
• Friendship & Respect: In the closing moments, the gift of the winged eagle belt and open, affectionate dialogue reaffirms the deep sense of camaraderie—and that, above all, is what this episode celebrates: real friendships, respect, and the journey both inside the squared circle and in life.

A must-listen for any wrestling fan seeking authenticity, humor, and a rare, intimate glimpse behind the curtain of WWE’s most genuine relationships.