John Cena is one of the longest babyfaces in pro wrestling. Once he turned babyface in the early 2000s, Cena has kept his place as the face of the WWE up until recent years as Roman Reigns has slipped into the role. During this run, Cena would remain babyface, much to the chagrin of wrestling fans.
While speaking on In the Envelope: The Actor’s Podcast, John Cena talked about the evolution of his character in WWE and when he found out WWE would never turn him heel in 2009:
“WWE and sports entertainment walk that gray line. Everyone knows it’s entertainment, everyone. But everyone wants to believe in what’s going on. They don’t ask, even the most iconic superhero characters, they’re known for their performances but they do get to step away. There is a clear-cut difference. In WWE, the audience doesn’t want that. They don’t.”
“And that’s what keeps them coming back and that’s what keeps the train on the tracks. That’s part of it. So I was made aware that I would not undergo a tectonic shift in John Cena, the character, probably around 2009. So that allowed me to get that conversation off the board, and I had to, or I chose to dive into nuance.”
John Cena on In The Envelope: The Actor’s Podcast
Cena has previously mentioned his charity work as one of the biggest reasons he was against the idea of his WWE character turning heel and becoming the villain. While most fans have heard about Cena’s backstage politics, there is the children in the audience who look up to Cena so it is understandable why both WWE and Cena would be against the idea of a heel turn.
H/T Wrestling Inc for Transcription
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