Actor John Cena is one of the most prominent and influential figures in the entertainment industry right now. With his off-screen charismatic personality and on-screen talent, he has managed to build a solid fanbase. He has given his fans many remarkable performances over the years and many will agree that the role of Peacemaker was one of them.
Initially, the role was reserved for another WWE wrestler turned actor, Dave Bautista, but he quit the project to work in director Zack Snyder’s 2021 film, Army of the Dead. Cena then took over the role and gave fans one of the most iconic iterations of the character in DC’s history.
James Gunn wanted Dave Bautista to play Peacemaker instead of John Cena
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, actor John Cena once acknowledged the fact that he wasn’t the initial choice for the role of Peacemaker in filmmaker James Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad (2021),
“I didn’t look at myself as a second choice; I just looked at it as a chance to do the best I could.”
Gunn wanted actor Dave Bautista, another former WWE wrestler, to play the iconic DC character, however, Bautista was more interested in working with Zack Snyder in his 2021 movie, Army of the Dead. With Bautista out, Cena had to take over.
John Cena reprised his role as Peacemaker in the Peacemaker TV series
Although 2021’s The Suicide Squad wasn’t a massive financial hit, fans liked John Cena’s portrayal of the character. His performance led to the creation of the Peacemaker TV series. The series further focused on Cena’s anti-hero as he goes on another big mission. In 2022, Cena told Esquire Middle East that he agreed to play Peacemaker once again without even hearing what Gunn had planned,
“James is like, ‘OK, so I did this thing. And would you like to-?’ And before he can even tell me what it was, I said, ‘Yes!’ There’s very few people I do that with because I really have to read the material. I’m not at a level where I can confidently make that commitment. I want to be able to read and know the tools that I have and what I can contribute. Working with James was such an experience that before he even said what he was doing I was interested. James said, ‘You don’t even know what it is yet.’ I said, ‘Yea no, I’m in,’ and James said, ‘Well, OK, we’re going to do Peacemaker for HBO Max,’ And I was flattered.”
As Gunn prepares his new DC Universe, it has been confirmed that Cena will continue to play Peacemaker in that universe along with many DCEU actors like Jason Momoa, Margot Robbie, and Viola Davis.
