Folks, it’s time to ring the bell because Cody Rhodes, WWE, and Fanatics are getting sued—and it’s not over who wore the best suit on Raw. Musician Wesley Eisold, frontman of the hardcore band American Nightmare, is taking them to court, alleging that Rhodes has committed the ultimate wrestling no-no: a merch foul! We’re talking breach of contract, inducing breach of contract, and intentional interference with contractual relations. Sounds intense, right? Almost as intense as a botched table spot.
Here’s the backstory: Eisold slapped down a trademark on “American Nightmare” back in 2016, covering his music and merch. Cody, whose legal name is Cody Runnels (yes, folks, not just another Rhodes scholar), didn’t claim his trademark until two years later. Fast forward to 2021, and we’ve got a deal sweeter than a steel chair shot to the back. Eisold agreed to let Cody use “The American Nightmare” moniker in exchange for a cool $30,000 and a stipulation: Cody’s name had to be 75% larger than “American Nightmare” on any merch. Because let’s face it, if your name isn’t as big as your gimmick, are you even wrestling?
Now, the lawsuit claims Cody, WWE, and Fanatics didn’t hold up their end of the bargain. Instead of “The American Nightmare” in big, bold Cody-approved font, what we’re getting is shirts where Rhodes’ name is playing hide-and-seek. WWE fans apparently think Eisold’s band is opening for Monday Night Raw—now that’s confusion.
In true ironic twist, Eisold’s American Nightmare had to change their name once upon a time too, thanks to a lawsuit from another band with the same name. They became Give Up The Ghost—but apparently, this time, Eisold isn’t about to give up the ghost on this merch mishap. He’s seeking up to $900,000 in damages. That’s a lot of cash for some confused fans and one allegedly undersized name!
Eisold even took to social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter, but we’re not getting into that lawsuit today) to clear things up for the WWE faithful. Defending his decision to file the lawsuit, Eisold made sure everyone knew this isn’t just some random powerbomb into the legal world. Cody, on the other hand? Well, he’s still got plenty of time to make that font yuge.