There was a time, not too long ago, when John Cena’s entrance theme would be drowned out by a cacophony of boos cascading down the arena. Fans threatened to riot if he won another match and desperately threw their weight behind each of his opponents, hoping against hope that he would finally lose.
And yet, the John Cena machine chugged on impervious to hate, the vitriol from the fans sliding off his back like water off a duck’s as he continued amassing one Title after another.
Naturally, fed up of the repetitive nature of his booking, the fans then started baying for him to “embrace the hate” and turn heel. Apart from slightly hinting at it during one particularly testy feud against Bray Wyatt, the WWE didn't sign off on that either.
So, it was settled. John Cena’s shining armour remained spotlessly white and the fans were left to deal with their disenchantment time and again.
However – thankfully – that time has passed.
Today, the climate in and around the WWE is so starkly dissimilar to the PG era that the proposition of a John Cena heel turn wouldn’t be out of place at all. In fact, if you’d care to read on, I’m pretty convinced that this is the perfect time to pull the trigger on it if it ever has to happen.
And here are 5 reasons why.
#1 We’ve moved on from the PG era
Who John Cena is as a character – for better or for worse – is inextricably linked to the PG era.
But for a man who was synonymous with the nature of the WWE product in those years, the realistic edge of today’s product offers a golden opportunity. Without having to be so politically correct and children-friendly, perhaps this is the best chance for John Cena to touch base with the hitherto unexplored facets of his gimmick.
Although it is still a largely kid-friendly product, it’s quite palpable that the target age demographic of the WWE has shifted today.
John Cena religiously adhered to Hustle, Loyalty and Respect for the millions of children over the world that watched WWE because of him. Now that the product itself has moved on, perhaps it is time that he does too.
#2 Merchandising doesn’t depend solely on him anymore
The WWE’s hesitation in turning John Cena heel, according to this very popular theory that made its rounds, had quite a bit to do with his immense merchandising potential as a babyface draw.
His gimmick was just so marketable that the WWE invested millions in churning out a wide variety of merchandise around it. Turning him heel could have – in Vince McMahon’s eyes, at least – seriously jeopardised that.
However, today, the scenario has changed.
Although Cena is still one of the biggest merchandising draws around, he’s not alone in shouldering that burden anymore. Fronted by Roman Reigns, a whole host of WWE Superstars that have recently risen to prominence are in a better position to spearhead the marketing campaigns of the WWE.
With the merchandising issue taken care of, one suspects that this would be as opportune a moment as any for the WWE to experiment with the John Cena heel turn too.
#3 He’s been replaced
“There was a time, not too long ago, when John Cena’s entrance theme would be drowned out by a cacophony of boos cascading down the arena. Fans threatened to riot if he won another match and desperately threw their weight behind each of his opponents, hoping against hope that he would finally lose” – this is the sentence that I began this article with, had you noticed.
And if you just remove ‘John Cena’ and replace it with ‘Roman Reigns’, it would still ring true, even today.
Essentially, that’s what has happened in the WWE too – John Cena has been replaced by Roman Reigns as the top babyface in the company. While that means that all the fans seem to have hopped on Reigns’ back now, it also means that John Cena doesn’t have to be a babyface anymore.
It’s still likely that Vince forever sticks with him as one, but if he ever chose to turn him, now wouldn’t be a bad time at all.
#4 WWE needs top heels
Kevin Owens and the Miz – who’re practically upper mid carders that are sporadically elevated to the main event spot. Braun Strowman – who is very much a work in progress (and heavily cheered for picking on Roman Reigns). Bray Wyatt – who just isn’t believable after a string of high-profile losses. Brock Lesnar – who rarely shows up and when he does, wows everyone with his otherworldly athletic feats anyway.
Yes, you probably guessed it.
The WWE hardly boasts of any credible main event heels today.
And although the functioning of the industry has departed considerably from conventional diktat, we can still agree that the best way to get a babyface over with the crowd is by having a top-level heel put him over.
With so few of them around, however, is it any surprise that the most favourable reaction that Reigns received from the crowd was on the back of a 70-year-old Vince McMahon writing himself into the Authority storyline just to take a bump?
Tsk, tsk.
If ever the WWE needed John Cena to turn heel, now wouldn’t be a bad time at all.
#5 He has become what he hates
During their two-year long feud, John Cena vilified The Rock as a Hollywood sell-out; someone who gave up pursuing his passion of performing for the fans in search of a lighter workload (at least in terms of the toll on the body) and a heavier payday.
Traditionally, the Superstars who chose the swanky Hollywood lifestyle over the graft of the pro-wrestling industry have always been portrayed as heels.
Hulk Hogan pulled it off impeccably as part of NWO, The Rock revelled in the role towards the end of his first WWE stint and The Miz has been the latest WWE Superstar to follow suit, reinventing himself adeptly as the Hollywood A-lister.
It’s not very surprising, really. Fans love to hate on someone who professes his undying love for the industry and then ups and goes chasing after the glitz and glamour of the silver screen.
With regards to John Cena, however, I’ve only one question left to ask.
Who’s the Hollywood sell-out now?
