Video games and pro wrestling have long had a symbiotic relationship, with many performers incorporating elements from their favorite games into their personas, movesets, and ring gear. For a brief time, current WWE Undisputed Champion Cody Rhodes displayed the iconic Triforce symbol from The Legend of Zelda on his boots, but according to the American Nightmare, a cease and desist letter from Nintendo saw him retire that symbol from his costume.
“I thought the principles of the Triforce–which are power, courage, and wisdom. I thought it was just applicable,” Rhodes said to fellow superstar Kit Wilson in an episode of WWE’s What Do You Wanna Talk About podcast. “I also got a cease and desist from Nintendo. It was very kind.”
Rhodes also bears a Triforce tattoo on his finger, but Nintendo likely won’t be requesting him to remove some of his flesh as it’s too small to see on TV. Like many other wrestlers, Rhodes is a noted gamer, and he’ll be appearing in the live-action Street Fighter movie later this year as William F. Guile, goofy haircut and all.
AEW’s Kenny Omega is another famous video game fan in wrestling circles, as several of his moves are named after Final Fantasy and Street Fighter attacks–including the V-Trigger knee strike and the One Winged Angel finishing move. Notably, he appeared in full Sephiroth cosplay at the 2023 NJPW Wrestle Kingdom event.
As for Nintendo, the company is known for being aggressive with the protection of its IP, especially when there’s potential money on the line. In the case of Rhodes, there’s a good chance that it didn’t want to see the Triforce appear on official WWE merchandising like action figures or official T-shirts, which would result on it losing potential revenue from its IP. Just recently, Nintendo went after the YouTube creator behind the popular series of “PokeNational Geographic” videos, and all of that content has since been removed from YouTube following a series of copyright strikes.