The Evolution of John Cena
John Cena doesn't have just one person he looks up to as his hero. In the wrestling star's book, a hero is someone who lives with purpose and attacks life with passion, no matter what job he or she clocks into.
Perhaps without realizing it, that definition perfectly describes John himself. Apart from being a decorated World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) champion, recording artist, and movie star, he is also a leader in the world of philanthropy. In 2018, he received the Sports Illustrated Muhammad Ali Legacy Award in part for his anti-bullying and cancer-awareness campaigns as well as his time spent visiting active and wounded troops. In that same year, he also broke the record for most fulfilled Make-A-Wish requests after granting 580 wishes (no one else had ever surpassed 300).
To many, the "You Can't See Me" icon is a hero, but especially to his WWE fanbase. John knows this and is cognizant of the fact that without his collaboration with the wrestling organization, the box-office hits, endorsement deals, and his overall platform may have never come to fruition.
"WWE is my family, they’ll always be my family and none of any of this exists without them, and I will never forget that," he explains.
His immense gratitude toward the organization has motivated him to stick with WWE for the foreseeable future, despite reports that suggest otherwise. As John puts it, it would take a lot for him to part ways with the company.
"I don’t think I’ll ever retire, because I don’t look at it like that ... You don’t retire from your family. I will never, ever stop waving the WWE flag ... I don’t think I’ll ever separate myself from them."
With that being said, John can't help but feel like his age is making things more difficult for him physically, to some degree. In his mind, fans pay a lot of hard-earned money to see the world’s best, and that’s exactly what WWE will always give them. And John does not want to compromise and "give a second-rate version of that."
"As a 42-year-old, going to be 43 in April ... I already know that I’m a little lighter, I’m a little slower, I’m not as strong, so all of the physical signs are like, 'I’m here, I’m here, I’m here,'” he says. "I can't lie to myself and say those things aren’t happening. They are. And either I accommodate my performance, or just say, ‘Hey, it’s time to do something different.'"
This staunch dedication to being at the top of his game has likely led to John's continual success. But while he may know what it takes to be a wrestling world champion or memorize a movie script, the level of commitment it takes to be a parent is unchartered territory for him. It's something that fire superintendent and smokejumper Jake Carson, John's character in the new family comedy Playing With Fire, is exposed to when forced to babysit three rambunctious siblings. Jake may be an expert when it comes to handling wildfires, but he quickly learns that dealing with kids is a whole different ball game.
The heroism of parents, John says, is an important message in the film that he's excited to touch on.
"I’ve always known that there’s a lot of patience required for parenting and it’s a job that never stops. It changes your life," he says. "When you talk to any parent, that is what they will say. They will say, ‘I love my kids, it changes my life, and it’s the best thing I’ve ever done.’ In that order ...."
His own father and mother, John and Carol Cena, raised five boys in their Massachusetts home. In the past, John explains that he's had extensive conversations with his parents about having five children. As he reveals, growing up, it was "a rather man’s man environment."
"I’ve done the best to work on myself and try to evolve out of that culture of hiding emotions and feelings by just avoiding."
Now, his brothers have a few daughters of their own, and according to John, spending time with them and child actors on movie sets is "like Kids Say the Darndest Things." But are parental responsibilities for him? It's been widely reported that his and ex-fiancé Nikki Bella's different stances on having children was part of the reason they called it quits last spring after six years together (Nikki wanted them, John did not). Now, it sounds like he still isn't sure he could commit to it — at least, at the moment.
"I don’t have a negative view towards parenting ... If anything, I’ve grown to enjoy being around children more and more. I’ve always enjoyed it, but it used to only be in like a performance aspect," he says.
"It's cool because of how much kids want to learn and how excited they are to learn about the questions that they have, no matter how ridiculous … I just don’t know if I could do it. Or, I’m not sure I'm ready to do it full-time right now."
Presently, much of John's time is dedicated to his film projects. Apart from promoting Playing With Fire, he'll be appearing in Fast and Furious 9 and The Suicide Squad sequel. Beyond that though, John doesn't know what his next big project will be. Or, so he claims.
"It's foolishly 'sports cliché,' but I just try to keep my feet planted where I'm at, and live in the today and now, and just do the best with the now. That hasn't failed me over my entire life."
Can't argue with that.
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