In the world of WWE, there’s no denying that John Cena is definitely one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time. Presenting a good boy persona and having a baby face were his selling points in the ring. However, an untapped heel Cena plan could have presented the wrestler-turned-actor in a new light.
While the idea of turning Heel sounded good in Cena’s head, the WWE, on the other hand, was not on board, concerned that this move would harm the company’s positive image and reduce the revenue he generated from his merchandise sales.
However, while the public did not get to witness that side of the wrestler in the ring, a past video featuring his ex-girlfriend and some close people will surely showcase a different side of the Massachusetts native.
John Cena once displayed his heel Cena persona
The “What If?” question has long haunted wrestling fans, imagining what could have happened if the Peacemaker star had gone heel. While the younger John Cena used the evil Doctor of Thuganomics (a trash-taking rapper) to set himself apart from the other wrestlers in the early 2000s, he never embraced this side of himself during his peak popularity from 2005 to 2017, when he won 13 WWE Championships and three World Heavyweight titles.
However, a snippet of an episode of Total Bellas, starring his then-girlfriend Nikki Bella shared via Instagram, showed the wrestler’s heel side.
Brie Bella and Daniel Bryan move into John Cena’s home in episode 1 to assist Nikki Bella in her recovery from a neck injury. While it may be a house for others, it is a castle for Cena, who imposed various “strict” house rules on the guests.
From not filming without his permission and keeping track of their laundry to having Nikki Bella sign a contract before moving in with him. Further, there would be coffee and bonfires only when he said so, leaving Brie Bella and Daniel Bryan perplexed and others scrambling for a word to respond. After watching this excerpt, a fan responded:
People wanted heel Cena. He was here all along
While John Cena and Nikki Bella were together during the filming of Total Bellas, they split up in 2018 after six years of dating, apparently owing to disagreements about starting a family.
John Cena on his scrapped turning heel plans
John Cena was unquestionably the crown jewel of Vince McMahon’s wrestling company during his illustrious career. So, introducing a new contrast to his ring persona was something that even the great wrestler thought about. But, just as the world of wrestling is full of twists and turns, so was Cena’s career trajectory.
In a previous interview with the Chris Van Vliet show, John Cena said that he had received word of WWE’s desire to turn him heel prior to his 2012 clash with The Rock (Dwayne Johnson). He also mentioned:
I heard Rumblings of we’re going to do it, and in 48 hours, I had a new track, a new studio mixed theme song, Final Mix. I had seven new singlets, low-cut singlets with boxing-type robes. I already had the boots in storage, so I dusted them off, I was ready to go
The first objective was to drastically transform his already-recognized character in the ring. Furthermore, changing the characteristics that fans admired about the wrestler into those that they despised.
However, this idea was scrapped in the middle due to the potential detrimental influence on the company and the overall revenue generated by the wrestler.
