Cody Rhodes Shows Up at UFC 332 as Guile to Promote Street Fighter

Cody Rhodes showed up at UFC 332 on Saturday, October 3, 2026, dressed in full costume as Guile, the character he plays in the live-action Street Fighter movie. The event was held at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Rhodes was pictured there surrounded by fans wearing Guile headpieces. The film opens in theaters on October 16, 2026.

What happened at UFC 332

Rhodes came in the full Guile costume and was photographed with fans who had dressed up to match. With the movie two weeks from release, the appearance doubled as promotion for it.

The fights went on around him. In the main event, Natalia Silva beat Wang Cong by unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46) to win the vacant UFC women's flyweight championship. Silva vs. Wang became the headliner after Valentina Shevchenko was injured. In the co-main event, Payton Talbott stopped Deiveson Figueiredo with punches at 2:09 of the first round.

Street Fighter: release date and cast

Street Fighter is directed by Kitao Sakurai, produced by Legendary Pictures and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is set in 1993 and follows Ryu and Ken Masters, two estranged fighters whom Chun-Li recruits for the next World Warrior Tournament. The movie was filmed in Australia between August and November 2025. It was first scheduled for March 20, 2026, and moved to October after distribution passed from Sony to Paramount.

• Cody Rhodes as Guile
• Roman Reigns as Akuma
• Andrew Koji as Ryu
• Noah Centineo as Ken Masters
• Callina Liang as Chun-Li
• David Dastmalchian as M. Bison
• Jason Momoa as Blanka
• 50 Cent as Balrog

Rhodes has been playing Guile in public for months

The UFC visit is part of a longer campaign. At SummerSlam in August, Rhodes walked out for his WWE Championship match against CM Punk with an entrance built around a Street Fighter character select screen, wearing a mask fitted with Guile's hairstyle. He lost that match after Randy Orton returned and interfered.

John Cena praised the approach in an interview published this week, saying he was "very proud of him for his choice" and adding:

I champion Cody for his ability to lean into his part.

Cena said Rhodes understands the film is bigger than him, and that the goal is for audiences to enjoy it.

Why a WWE star turned up at a UFC event

WWE and UFC have shared a parent company since September 12, 2023, when the two merged to form TKO Group Holdings. Crossovers between the brands have become routine since then, and a WWE headliner in the crowd at a UFC event no longer needs much explaining.

There is also a Paramount link. Starting in 2026, Paramount became the exclusive U.S. home of UFC under a seven-year, $7.7 billion agreement with TKO, with numbered events like UFC 332 streaming on Paramount+ instead of pay-per-view. Paramount Pictures is also the studio releasing Street Fighter. So the star of a Paramount movie spent his Saturday night at a UFC event streaming on Paramount+.

What comes next for Rhodes

The night before UFC 332, on the October 2 episode of SmackDown in Denver, Rhodes lost a triple threat Money in the Bank qualifying match. Kevin Owens won it with a pop-up powerbomb on Johnny Gargano while Orton kept Rhodes from getting back into the ring. That leaves Rhodes out of the men's ladder match at Money in the Bank on October 10 in New Orleans, with his feud with Orton still unresolved. Street Fighter reaches theaters six days later.

Questions

When does the Street Fighter movie come out?

Street Fighter opens in U.S. theaters on October 16, 2026, including IMAX.

Who does Cody Rhodes play in Street Fighter?

Cody Rhodes plays Guile. Roman Reigns, another WWE star, plays Akuma.

Why was Cody Rhodes at UFC 332?

He attended in full Guile costume to promote Street Fighter. WWE and UFC are both owned by TKO Group Holdings.