WWE Future Plans For Heel Randy Orton

Published: Mar 16, 2026 by Liam | Last Updated: Mar 16, 2026 by Liam

Liam has been reporting & analyzing wrestling news for over eight years, and is currently the Managing Editor at WrestleTalk.com. Immersed in wrestling for 18 years, he has over 11,000 published articles in addition to leading and overseeing WrestleTalk.com's coverage.

An update has emerged regarding plans in WWE for Randy Orton following his heel turn on SmackDown this past Friday.

SmackDown saw Orton violently attack Cody Rhodes in a scene reminiscent of something ‘2009 Randy Orton’ would have done.

However, fans in the arena at SmackDown actually cheered Orton’s attack and chanted for him as the show went off the air, as opposed to booing him for turning on Rhodes, who has been the top babyface in WWE for several years at this point.

This has led to some concerns that Orton’s supposed ‘heel turn’ will actually lead to fans being more on his side and booing Rhodes at WrestleMania 42 – which already seemed very possible with a portion of fans starting to turn against Rhodes recently.

Will WWE Fans Boo Randy Orton

WWE management is aware of the fact fans may be behind Randy Orton more than Cody Rhodes in this situation, and as reported on Wrestling Observer Radio, those in the company do expect Orton to be cheered at WrestleMania despite the ‘heel turn’.

On WOR, Dave Meltzer said:

“It’s an interesting one. Because I still expect Randy Orton to get cheered at WrestleMania. I think everyone’s expecting it, including WWE, don’t kid yourself. But they want Randy to be the heel.

“It’s tough because when you get a guy in his mid 40s and he’s been around for 25 years on top… You have that thing where people don’t really want to boo you because they’ve seen you for too long and they appreciate you and you’re not a dick to them anymore, even if you act like a dick. So, it’s hard.”

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Why Did WWE Turn Randy Orton Heel

Discussing the reason WWE decided to turn Randy Orton heel as opposed to running a babyface vs babyface match between him and Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania, Meltzer said:

“I think Randy Orton is way better as a heel than he is a babyface. It’s a tough one but they wanted to put some conflict into it and they didn’t want to go in there with babyface (vs) babyface.

“I think they could have done babyface (vs) babyface first match and then done something to keep it going, but it’s WrestleMania – they wanted to get there now, so that was the angle.”

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Is The Randy Orton Heel Turn A Good Idea

Ultimately, if Randy Orton’s heel turn results in more fan interest in his WWE Championship match against Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania, then yes, it’s a good idea and will have worked.

Whether the fans actually boo him from this point forward is secondary to whether it increases business and leads to more ticket sales and views for the match.

What WWE does have to be cautious about is how it will affect fans’ reactions to Rhodes, whose babyface journey was one of the main driving forces behind the company’s major business over the past few years.

If the fans are going to turn on him in favor of Orton, WWE needs to have a plan in place for who will replace Rhodes as the next top babyface star for years to come.