In the recent trailer for the 9th installment of Fast and Furious, newcomer John Cena was featured prominently.
John Cena will be returning to WWE Programming next Friday night on Smackdown.His appearance is a far cry from his formidable days as a “full-timer” as he has stepped fully into the lane of the acting world. And ironically, with a franchise familiar with a big-time rival grappler.
In the recent trailer for the 9th installment of Fast and Furious, newcomer John Cena was featured prominently.
A “master thief, assassin, and a high-performance driver,” Jacob, Cena’s character in the film, is billed as the answer to the ever-elusive Dominic Toretto, his brother. Charlize Theron’s character, Cipher, had sought the services of the master criminal. With the franchise known for its car chases, street fights, and drama-filled storylines; this seems to be right at home for one formerly known to wrestling fans as The Doctor of Thuganomics.
This movie role is monumental for Cena in many regards, as the franchise in ways served as a launchpad for another wrestler turned actor’s career. In promotion for Fast Five in 2011, the franchise needed a boost in a big way. Fast & Furious in 2009 drew a 29% score on Rotten Tomatoes, and critics were skeptical that they exhausted all possibilities in the storyline. That was until Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
Johnson’s Hobbs character had become a fixture in the Fast franchise, with him appearing in three more films after his initial inclusion beginning in 2011. Oddly enough, the promotion for the film was in line with Dwayne Johnson’s in-ring return as “The Rock.”
Upon returning, Rock’s emotional return was met with much fanfare, as the fan-favorite stated that he loved the wrestling business and will never go away. He then called out to a man who questioned his love for it all... John Cena.
Cena spoke on Rock in a 2008 interview with The Sun. While he lauded the fact that Johnson as a person was a “fantastic guy,” he was annoyed at the fact that Rock had always mentioned his love for the business, yet never returned to the industry.
“He's a very good actor," Cena said. "He's very successful, he's done very well for himself and associating with sports entertainment doesn't do much for his acting career. It only helps out the sports entertainment audience so I get why he doesn't come back."
Cena continued, "Just don't [expletive] me around and tell me that you love this when you are just doing this to do something else. That's the only thing that gets me pissed off.”
Rock’s retort incited a two-year feud with Cena, centered around the personal remarks between the two.
From rap battles to White House visits (yes, even that), this rivalry dubbed “Once in a Lifetime” culminated at WrestleMania 28 with a Rock win. This grossed one of the highest buy rates in WWE PPV history, ultimately booking a rematch the very next year, where Cena came out victorious.
Since then, questions regarding the two have been met with an admiration for one another, with Johnson speaking highly of Cena and Cena ultimately apologizing for casting him as a “part-timer”, a term the now 42-year old is synonymous with today.
While Cena has buried the hatchet with Johnson, Rock encountered other rivals, essentially a family.
On the set of Fast 8, professional issues between Johnson and Vin Diesel became apparent.
After filming, Johnson then took to social media to thank all of the crew for the work on the film. Not pictured? The rock of the franchise, Vin Diesel.
Rumors of strife were soon dispelled by both parties, yet picked up with the announcement of Hobbs and Shaw, a Johnson spin-off of the franchise co-starring Jason Statham. Following the dropoff in the global box office in Fate of the Furious, Universal sought out the Johnson & Statham twosome for a reprieve, and it left the Fast Family taken aback. Some dumbfounded, others? Well...
Tyrese, a staple of the Fast Franchise, took to social media after the announcement of the film, speaking out against the wrestler-turned-actor for the spin-off delaying Fast 9.
“Congratulations to The Rock and your brother in law aka 7 Bucks producing partner for making The Fast and the Furious franchise about YOU - And like you, DJ even if they call I will not be deleting this post - Gn folks see you in 2020 April #FastFamily right? Nah... it's about #TeamDewayne. 3 yrs will it be worth the wait? #NoShaw just Hobbs will this be another #BayWatch?”
Upon the premiere of the movie last August, its success was present, but not to the levels of the movies past. Hearing the numbers and commending his peer for trying, he let it be known that splitting up the cast: “doesn’t have the value that one would assume it does.” And poof, exit the inclusion of the former "People’s Champion" and enter his successor. The man who once questioned his allegiance to the very thing that put them both on the map, John Cena. And it is only right, knowing Cena’s love for cars and action scenes.
:)