Multiple WWE talents expressed frustration over Pat McAfee’s insertion into the Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton WrestleMania 42 program, with some throwing their hands up over a decision they felt was both creatively unnecessary and unfair to Rhodes, according to PWInsider Elite’s Mike Johnson.
Johnson reported that the displeasure was not simply about the storyline logic of adding McAfee to a feud between two performers with deep personal history. The feeling among the talent was that the match simply did not need an additional element, given everything Rhodes and Orton already bring to the table.
The situation was made worse by McAfee’s SmackDown promo, which he described as off-the-cuff and unscripted. The content of those comments did not land well with those watching from backstage, compounding the existing unease about the direction.
“While we are told Rhodes didn’t ‘sell’ the McAfee pivot to anyone, there was still a feeling of sympathy for him having to now have to ‘carry that additional weight,’ as one talent said, leading into WrestleMania,” Johnson wrote.
The phrase carry that additional weight captures the broader sentiment, with talent feeling that Rhodes was being asked to absorb the heat and confusion generated by a corporate decision made above the creative team’s level, all while trying to maintain the integrity of one of WrestleMania 42’s top matchess. Reports from BodySlam.net and PWInsider previously confirmed that the decision to insert McAfee came from TKO brass rather than from Triple H or the creative team, with Ari Emanuel believed to be behind the push.
Rhodes defends the Undisputed WWE Championship against Orton in the Night 1 main event of WrestleMania 42 on April 18 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada.
