Goldust Talks About AEW’s Success Being A Good Thing For WWE

WWE Legend & Brother Of All Elite Wrestling’s Cody Rhodes, Dustin “Goldust” Rhodes, recently spoke with the folks from Sports Illustrated for an in-depth interview. Below are the highlights from the interview:

On his family’s reaction to when he first debuted as Goldust on WWE television: “Dad was sitting on his couch, and my brother Cody, who was only a kid at the time, was down on the floor playing with his action figures. The music hit, I came out, and Cody turned to Dad, who had this deer-in-the-headlights look, thinking, ‘What the hell is my son doing?’ I got his attention that night, and I got the world’s attention.”

On playing heel and babyface and adapting to last 20 years with the character in WWE: “I’ve kept evolving the character. At first you hated Goldust with a passion, then you laughed with him. You loved him, you hated him again, and 24 years later, I can try to be the meanest, dirtiest heel in the business, but people are still going to love me. And I love them, too. The landscape for professional wrestling has changed, and there are very few that can go out there and get good heat anymore. And it would be no good for me to try that, as people have grown to accept and love Goldust.”

On a conversation he had with his late father, the legendary Dusty Rhodes, about how proud he was of his son’s Goldust character: “I am Dusty’s son, but I learned the hard way I was never going to be ‘The American Dream.’ That was difficult for me, and I made some molehills into mountains. Before Dad passed, we talked so much about the Goldust character, what it grew into, and how much he was proud of it. And he talked a lot about how proud he was of Cody and my sisters, too. I get teary-eyed just thinking about it, but I’m honored to be in this family. So it’s important that Cody and myself do everything we can to leave our lasting impression in this business. I’ve done that, and now Cody is on his own and doing exactly that.”

On dealing with substance issues in WWE: “This business is my passion. I came out of my mother’s womb wanting to be a professional wrestler. But then notoriety and stardom happened, and I started getting cocky. Drugs and alcohol started to consume me. That tore me up in a downward spiral. I chose to go down a very dark place, and I can’t change that, but those moments have served as an education for me. Hopefully I can be back wrestling within the next couple weeks. What that holds for me, I have no idea. There are no plans for me that I know of, so I’ll just take it day by day.”

On returning to the ring, his newfound interest in acting and looking forward to what his brother, Cody, does with AEW: “Me and Cody talk a lot, and I was on a movie set for a horror film that I’m doing, and we were texting about that AEW rally in Jacksonville. The pyro alone was spectacular. They’re doing it really professionally, from the heads of the company to their big talent to the newer stars. I’m very curious to see what Cody and the Young Bucks can do with All Elite Wrestling. I hope this really takes storm and becomes something formidable. You need places to go and work, competition is great and it is the best thing that can happen for WWE. I am very proud of Cody, and I know Dad would be so proud and happy for Cody. He has a great mind for the business, he’s done so much already, but he’s paid attention and learned from mistakes. He’s fought for what he has, and his work in AEW will show that.”

You can check out the entire interview of Goldust at SI.com.