John Cena Says Agency Told Him to Reject ‘Barbie’ Cameo as It ‘May Take You Out’ of Future Lead Roles: Their Perspective Was ‘This Is Beneath You’

John Cena revealed on “The Howard Stern Show” that an agency advised him not to appear in Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” in a cameo as a mermaid Barbie. The WWE icon and action star was told appearing in “Barbie” might impact future leading roles. Cena refused to listen.

“[The agency is] just going on what they know,” Cena said. “And what they know is, ‘This entity, this commodity gravitates toward these things, we should stay in this lane.’ But I’m not a commodity. I’m a human being, and I operate under the construct of every opportunity is an opportunity.”

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Cena was filming his role in “Fast X” on the studio lot right near where the “Barbie” shoot was taking place. He ran into Margot Robbie by accident and she pitched him the idea of coming over to film a little bit for the “Barbie” movie.

“Margot was like, ‘We’ll make you a mermaid. You’ll be in it for half a day.’ Yeah, sure,” Cena said. “But I think the perspective from an agency standpoint was, ‘This is beneath you,’ which I get that. But also to the agency’s credit, immediately they acquiesced, and I was like, ‘No we’re going to do it,’ but all they can do is offer their guidance.”

“They’re not ultimately making the choice,” Cena said. “And their guidance is… ‘Truly trickle down economics from this may take you out of these lead lap slots.’ And I get all that. I’ve always operated under the philosophy that good work gets you another chance.”

Cena appeared for less than a minute in “Barbie” as a mermaid alongside pop star Dua Lipa. The film turned out to be an enormous hit with $1.4 billion at the worldwide box office, making it the top earner of 2023 and the biggest film in Warner Bros. history, and an Oscars powerhouse with eight nominations, including best picture.

Watch Cena’s appearance on “The Howard Stern Show” in the video below.

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