As the US and Israel went to war on Iran this year, it seemed like a pivotal moment had arrived for Reza Pahlavi, the son of the autocratic shah who was overthrown in 1979.

But the Trump administration kept its distance. In mid-January, the US president told Reuters that Pahlavi "seems very nice, but I don't know how he'd play within his own country."

Reuters found that as Iranian-American human rights activist Ahmad Batebi prepared to address a UN Security Council meeting, US Ambassador Mike Waltz personally urged him not to mention Pahlavi by name. When Washington and Tehran later signed a ceasefire memorandum, it made no mention of regime change.

Meanwhile, a coalition of dissidents collapsed after an incident at a Toronto panel in 2023, where Pahlavi's wife allegedly told other dissidents they were "nobodies" compared to her husband. She has called the claim a "complete fabrication."

Despite the setbacks, Pahlavi retains real support: a survey of 31,450 Iranians found about 48% view him favorably, according to Gamaan Research Institute director Ammar Maleki.