Shortly after Cody's release from the WWE, it was reported that “The American Nightmare” was not allowed to use the Cody Rhodes name due to WWE having the rights to the Rhodes name.
In a 2017 interview with Sports Illustrated, Cody confirmed not being able to use the Rhodes name, stating that it was an intellectual property issue, and he vowed to get the Rhodes name back. However, he also admitted that the longer he performs without the Rhodes name, the more he became comfortable with not having it.
"There is something to not always reminding people of a show they've already seen, but instead embracing the one right in front of him," Cody said. "I am Cody, and I can promise you that the future is going to be even better than the past."
Recently, a user on Twitter sent a tweet about WWE preventing Cody from using the Rhodes name outside of the company, while Velveteen Dream "is referred to as 'Dream.'" He added, "nothing against Patrick Clark, but come on."
Cody disagreed with this comment and put over Velveteen Dream as a great talent.
“Nobody is keeping me from using my last name. There’s no evil plot,” Cody said. “He could call himself ‘blue eyed velveteen American dream soul jr’ and I wouldn’t be offended. He’s very talented and not hurting anybody. Besides, we Rhodes always make a comeback. We endure.”
Cody will be competing in the triple threat main event against Dalton Castle and Marty Scurll at tonight's Best in the World pay-per-view. If Cody is able to capture the title, the main event for "All-In" on September 1 will be changed from an NWA World Championship match to a title vs. title match, per the agreement made with Cody and Nick Aldis.