“Vince toyed with the idea” - John Cena reveals why he never turned heel in WWE
John Cena was the face of the WWE and for two decades. There is no doubt Cena was Vince McMahon's top guy, but the presentation of his character has always been a heavily debated topic.
John Cena was portrayed as a typical babyface throughout most of his career and generally received mixed reactions from the WWE Universe. Speaking on the Pat McAfee Show, The Leader of Cenation revealed that McMahon had thought of ideas to turn him heel for the WrestleMania 28 match against The Rock.
Cena only had one wish for the heel turn, wanting it to be an all-in move and not just a quick flash.
"I remember Vince toyed with the idea of turning me heel versus The Rock in Miami. I said, 'No problem, I understand, I'll do it. Just remember that we are so deep in at this point that we can't do it and then jump back because we'll be sunk at both ends.' If we do it, I have to be the opposite of virtue, I have to be pure evil and we go all in," Cena said.
The former WWE Champion went on to elaborate on how he always wanted to be someone a fan could "relate to."
"From a believability standpoint, people always see me in uniform because I want people to know that what they see is someone they can relate to. He decided against it and at that point he said, 'I don't think we're ever going to do it.'" (H/T - Fightful)
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Cena would go in the match as a babyface and lose against The Rock at WrestleMania 28 but go on to win their rematch at WrestleMania 29.
Fans never got to see a heel Cena after he became the face of the company. The WWE Universe received a glimpse of his darker side in The Firefly Fun House match at WrestleMania 36. In the cinematic bout, Cena briefly dressed up in nWo gear and gave viewers a clear tease of his villainous side.
Will John Cena make a return?
"What always brings me back to the WWE isn't the falling down or the improvement of physical skill it's the story telling.. I love the challenge of telling a story & that's what acting is" ~@JohnCena
#PatMcAfeeShowLIVE https://t.co/8fE4RSbGBe
Fans haven't seen John Cena make a televised WWE appearance since his match at SummerSlam against Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship.
The 16-time World Champion has previously said that he's not done with WWE. Speaking on The Pat McAfee Show, Cena revealed that what keeps bringing him back to WWE is the ability to tell stories, comparing it to his current job as an actor.
The former Doctor of Thuganomics is still in superb physical shape, so it would not be entirely out of the question to see him have another run in the main-event scene.
Would you like to see John Cena make a WWE return? Sound off in the comments below.