John Cena on his WWE character: “I’m not a babyface nor a heel—I’m a human being”
In a video published to WIRED’s YouTube channel, John Cena answered the Internet’s most searched questions about him. Here are the highlights…
Q: What did John Cena do to turn heel?
John Cena: “That’s a good question, because I believe I said on television that I’m not a babyface nor a heel—I’m a human being. So if you have an answer to this question, it’s more personal than practical.”
Q: What is John Cena WrestleMania? What is John Cena WrestleMania record?
John Cena: “This should probably be possessive—what is John Cena’s WrestleMania record? I’d like to think I’ve finished second place a few times, but I don’t know how many. Hopefully I’ve finished first more than I’ve finished second. What I do know is there are no more WrestleMania matches for this guy. My last one was a few weeks ago. All righty.”
Q: What is John Cena’s favorite animal?
John Cena: “Hell, I don’t know. I would just literally be making something up. I don’t wanna play favorites in the animal kingdom and I try not to do that. So I do not have a favorite animal.”
Q: What makes John Cena a hero?
John Cena: “Well, they say perspective is everything. And if you think someone dressed like a member of a highly affiliated organized crime family, wearing a pocket watch that doesn’t work, is somehow aspirationally something you wanna aspire to—that’s a great perspective of life and I appreciate that. So thank you so much.”
Q: Who is John Cena (best friend in WWE)?
John Cena: “Again, we should probably add an apostrophe to this, but that’s okay. When you’re the 17-time champion, that means you’ve lost it 16 times. So that is an environment with no friends. I have no allegiances, and may God have mercy on my soul.”
Q: Who is John Cena’s biggest rival?
John Cena: “That one’s simple—the audience. My goodness, we’ve been going back and forth for almost 25 years now. You’re tireless. You have the energy of an Everlast battery. I’ve tried to break you. I can’t. You got me on the ropes. This is my last nerve. I’ve said I’m gonna retire, and I will go down swinging trying to crack your resolve. But dammit, you guys are tough. You are my biggest rival.”
Q: Who is John Cena’s best friend in real life?
John Cena: “Well, I do have a close crew, but I gotta put the boss first and foremost. That is my wife. I love her and she’s my best friend.”
Q: Who is John Cena’s favorite BTS member?
John Cena: “This one’s gonna set the world ablaze. My favorite BTS member is… hope you got that one.”
Q: Did John Cena actually play the piano in Peacemaker?
John Cena: “Yes, that is my haphazard version of Home Sweet Home. I don’t remember a note of it, but I did actually play it. I’m trying to learn how to play the piano. I’ve been trying now for eight years. I still do not know because I practice in my free time, and I have realized by my level of piano that I don’t have a lot of free time. But I still have a lot of fun doing it.”
Q: Does John Cena like anime?
John Cena: “I do, but again, not a lot of free time. So the last anime I saw was Fist of the North Star, which is such a cool movie. It’s about a post-apocalyptic society of martial arts superheroes. It’s kind of like pro wrestling if there was a post-apocalyptic WWE universe. Yeah, Fist of the North Star. It’s an oldie but a goodie.”
Q: Does John Cena run his Instagram?
John Cena: “[bleep] yes I do. I post one picture every day that has personal meaning to me. It will never be accompanied with text. You will never see my face. I will never do more than one image a day. Now sometimes the clock is off because my day is in, let’s say, Budapest or Morocco, and you’re thinking like, “Oh, he posted twice today.” If you’re really hawking my account that much, go do something with yourself rather than hawk my account. But it is the way I run my Instagram.”