John Cena’s feud with Dwayne Johnson, starting from their heated on-screen rivalry in the ring (as real as it comes), to their constant spats, continues to play like a broken record in both the wrestling world and Hollywood. As Johnson, who remained the face of WWE in the ’90s, made the jump to Hollywood, Cena was the first one to make personal attacks, calling him a part-time wrestler.
Dwayne Johnson and John Cena
While Johnson wanted to shove his size 15 boot right up Cena’s a**, the 16-time WWE champion would leave no attempt to humiliate Johnson publicly. In recent years, John Cena, who himself took the Hollywood route, had a change of heart, putting an end to the war of words. Now, The Suicide Squad actor has nothing but nice things to say about Johnson.
John Cena’s Guilt Trip Over Pulling Down Dwayne Johnson
John Cena took over WWE when Dwayne Johnson made a switch to Hollywood. Johnson, a 10-time world champion’s decision to switch to movies turned out to be as lucrative as his WWE career. However, in this process, the “two faces of their generations” were high on a war of words, which only came to an end recently.
After questioning Dwayne Johnson’s decision to switch to movies, calling him a “part-time wrestler”, John Cena himself made a similar decision, following in the footsteps of The Rock. The Trainwreck star also admitted that he regrets making negative comments about his fellow wrestler, stating:
“It was stupid of me. It genuinely was. That was my perspective at the time. For me to not be able to see Dwayne’s vision on what he wanted to do personally, and how his personal success could affect a growing global brand, that was just ignorant on my part.”
John Cena and Dwayne Johnson in the ring
John Cena admitted that he made those lewd comments against the Fast Five star because he wanted The Rock “selfishly, on Monday Night Raw and on Smackdown Live.” Cena explained:
“We have our blinders on, sometimes, in these daily situations of life, and, to me, my thing was, ‘Hey man, as a fan, I loved you performing in this venue all the time, you left us high and dry, why aren’t you back here? It’s obvious you’re still healthy and obvious you’re still capable.
In 2021, Cena returned to the ring, hoping that Johnson would return to the sport. The Rock did return in January to host Wrestlemania 27. As for Cena, the wrestler seems to be enchanted by his longtime rival. In Cena’s words, Dwayne Johnson stands as the “number one box office draw” in the world and an example, of how “there’s more to WWE stars than wrestling“.
Dwayne Johnson Electrifies John Cena’s Soul
Dwayne Johnson fans were left gobsmacked after John Cena called himself the biggest fan of The Rock in 2021. But before Cena found enlightenment, a lot went down between the longtime rivals. In March 2023, an old clip from WWE Rivals gave fans a deeper look into the legendary feud between two WWE icons.
The clip revealed that before the dream match of 2012, Cena publicly humiliated Johnson on and off-screen, questioning how The Rock hadn’t been in the ring in eight years, pointing to the fact that Johnson “doesn’t care about the business”.
John Cena followed in Dwayne Johnson’s footsteps and switched to movies
On the other hand, The Rock called John Cena an idiot, stating, “This is what happens when idiots have confidence,” leading up to the much-anticipated Wrestlemania match between the two WWE icons. Cena often went off-script, making things too personal.Even though he claimed to “beat the h*ll out” of The Rock, Johnson reigned supreme, earning a hard-fought victory with his signature, Rock Bottom move in the famous Wrestlemania match. Since stepping foot into Hollywood, Cena has remained thankful to Johnson, admitting:“I’m very thankful to Dwayne Johnson. His success has gotten me a lot of opportunities that I’m extremely thankful for, and certainly wouldn’t have without him.”
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson
Believe it or not, none of the above is scripted. But again, John Cena’s decision to join the Fast X cast has certainly raised brows among The Rock’s army, especially after Luke Hobbs’ absence from the 10th installment. Cena may have called a truce, but Vin Diesel isn’t done with his rivalry with The Rock.
