Dwayne Johnson stepped outside of the WWE ring and entered Hollywood in 2001 with The Mummy Returns. For the first two decades in the industry, The Rock was undoubtedly the go-to choice for filmmakers looking to add a bit of WWE star power to their projects.
However, in recent times, he has been seemingly losing ground to John Cena, his former WWE arch-nemesis. From The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker to Fast X and Barbie, Cena has made his presence known in every corner of Hollywood. The trailer of his forthcoming comedy, Ricky Stanicky, is also making plenty of headlines.
Interestingly, Cena is managing all this, having already shown his dominance over Johnson in the wrestling ring as well as on the Billboard chart.
Read more: “It was f—king stupid”: John Cena Regrets Exposing Dwayne Johnson’s Humiliating WWE Secret
John Cena Trumped Dwayne Johnson in WWE Before Entering Hollywood
Dwayne Johnson and John Cena are regularly pitched against each other thanks to their iconic rivalry of the 2010s. Things kicked off between the two jewels of WWE in 2011 after the Fast and Furious star returned to the wrestling world after seven years and took an aim at Cena.
This led to plenty of back-and-forth action between the two for the next two years. As expected, this also gave rise to fan debates, with both Johnson and Cena fans claiming to have an upper hand in different categories.
The duo first faced each other at WrestleMania 28 in 2012. The Rock stunned Cena and won the fight. In 2013, the latter came back and beat the former at WrestleMania 29 to make it 1-1.
When it comes to the most number of titles, there’s only one winner. Cena is one of the most decorated WWE stars of all time, having held 16 world championship reigns in total. In comparison, The Rock boasts just 10.
Between the wrestling ring and Hollywood, the Peacemaker star also achieved one record in the music scene that the Black Adam actor doesn’t have.
John Cena’s Billboard Record Remains Out of Dwayne Johnson’s Reach
In 2005, Cena released his debut album, You Can’t See Me, alongside his cousin Tha Trademarc. The album included the 46-year-old’s iconic entrance anthem, The Time Is Now.
It was loved by fans so much that it climbed to #15 on the Billboard 200 chart when it first came out.
Johnson also tried to test his star power on the charts, making his rap debut in Tech N9ne’s 2021 single, Face Off. As per Variety, he wrote his verse himself.
“One take,” the 51-year-old recalled his recording experience. “I was drinking Teremana, so I had already been a bit lit and was ready to go. We sent it to Tech and his engineers and the text I got back from Tech, in all capital letters, was ‘F-ck yes!!!!’”
Johnson did earn plenty of plaudits for his efforts, but the song could only register a peak position of 45 on US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard).
