It’s been 14 years since John Cena blurted the word ‘Ruthless Aggression’ to Kurt Angle’s face and began his WWE career. If WWE was Game Of Thrones Cena is the last of the dragons. The last spectacle from the WWE Family. The last true star the company has ever made.
He’s been hailed as the franchise star since around 2005 and the company has granted him the tag of being ‘the face that runs the place’. And with that power comes the responsibility of getting more business opportunities for the business, more awareness about his company.
In his tenure as THE face, he’s been a part of many mainstream gigs, some of which have been quite successful.
There hasn’t been anybody who has truly transcended the presence of Cena. Some did come close but WWE never booked them the way Cena was ever booked.
Here are his top 5 mainstream Cena gigs:
Hosting the ESPYs
The most recent of his successful mainstream appearances has been at the ESPYs - short for Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Award. What’s a sports entertainer doing in a show focused on only sports (a completely unrehearsed activity compared to professional wrestling)?
Well, he started off hosting it by giving one of the most fantastic monologues ever answering that very question. He talked about characters and stories and journeys of players from various sports, like talking about the turns LeBron James’ reputation took when he left Cleveland Cavaliers to join the Miami Heat to only come back to the Cavaliers and win the NBA Finals.
He was quite eloquent throughout it all. And his jokes had just about the right bite.
The Today Show
Cena’s been one of the most recognizable faces from the world of wrestling to make multiple appearances on The Today Show and he’s had quite a few memorable moments like surprising young fans or dancing to ‘Salt N Pepa’ or raising up the adorbs cuddling baby animals - most of the time being suited up.
The most recent of his appearances sees him talking against Donald Trump’s views on Muslim immigrants.
It was quite commendable since WWE have worked with Trump before. Cena though wanted Trump to get trumped.
Scooby doo/ Gillette commercial
This is hilarious and that’s exactly why it works so well. Watching Cena avatars in animated shows is probably one of the most entertaining pastimes ever. Just go back and watch his appearance on Scooby Doo.
It’ll surprise fans who haven’t watched wrestling in a long time and it will get you enough invested in Cena because of how funny his entrance on the show is. It lives up to his Superman persona. He saves the gang.
And let’s not forget his Gillette commercial:
Trainwreck
Not many WWE Superstars have had successful stints in big-budget Hollywood projects. Batista is an emerging star and The Rock has been the only one to be absolutely successful. Cena starred in many forgettable WWE films.
But not many will forget his role in ‘Trainwreck’ opposite Amy Schumer. He played an overtly sensitive boyfriend and his nude sequence wasn’t certainly the kind of stuff for a PG audience or for his girlfriend Nikki Bella.
The role was quite hilarious and it landed him roles in more mainstream films like ‘Sisters’ starring the wonderful Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.
Parks and Recreation
Speaking of more TV Shows, Cena appeared on one of the best TV shows ever - Parks and Recreation. He appears as a “Martial Arts Superstar’ to assist Andy Dwyer’s character that turned into a local television star ‘Johnny Karate’.
But things take a hilarious turn and Cena is later arrested for stealing Karate’s guitar. He is stuck with a tarantula at the end of the episode probably getting bitten to death.
This wasn’t just about any show. This was Parks and Rec and being there tells you quite something about his own taste in shows and other media.
