WWE’s decision to tease tension between Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns has raised doubts over how much longer Cody Rhodes can play the babyface. It was evident on the September 13 episode of “WWE SmackDown” that fans were ready to embrace Reigns following his four-month hiatus, perhaps at Rhodes’ expense, as some boos were directed his way. The following week, WWE made a creative choice to film another dueling promo between the two stars, this time taking fans out of the equation, with WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray saying there was nothing not to love about the segment.

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How imminent a Cody Rhodes heel turn may be is anyone’s guess, but on “Busted Open Radio,” Bully surmised that Reigns’ former wise man, Paul Heyman, could help facilitate a credible transition. Bully pulled out a rather deep cut from the “Star Wars” prequels to emphasize how it could be done. 

“When Emperor Palpatine is telling the story to Anakin Skywalker about [Darth Plagueis] the wise, and you can see the wheels turning in Anakin. And he asks the Emperor, ‘Is it possible to learn this type of power?’ And that’s when the Emperor says, ‘Not from a Jedi.’ A Jedi is a babyface,” Bully explained, adding, “That’s when the turn comes. I just got goosebumps thinking about that scene because I can see that scene playing out between Paul Heyman and Cody Rhodes.”

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Complicating a Rhodes heel turn is that he’s WWE’s top merchandise seller. It’s generally understood that heels don’t move as much merch as babyfaces, a theory that kept John Cena from turning heel for years. A recent report revealed Rhodes had entered the top five in sales overall at sports merchandise conglomerate Fanatics, becoming the first wrestler to reach such a milestone. Meanwhile, the wise man hasn’t been seen on WWE TV since June the Bloodline attacked Heyman.