JOHN CENA ON PLAYING A NON-RACING BULL

Talking to us, John Cena, the 40yearold wrestler-turned actor, reveals all about the kind of roles that he likes to play, his upcoming projects and more

John Cena is one of the few wrestlers who can boast of doing films across multiple genres. The WWE superstar has been in popular comedy films such as Trainwreck (2015) and the Daddy’s Home franchise films as well as action thrillers, The Marine (2006) and 12 Rounds (2009). The 40-year-old actor tells us that he wants to be a part of movies that narrate “good stories”, and that’s also one of the reasons why he has been open to doing voice-overs and animation films.

In a candid interview with us over the phone from Australia, Cena talks about his voice-over for the lovable bull in the animation film Ferdinand, which releases on December 15, his love for acting and the kinds of roles he wants to play. Excerpts:

What made you say ‘yes’ to your role in Ferdinand?

I jumped at the idea of the film. I loved the character, [the bull] is someone who is strong, and yet he doesn’t want to hide his emotions and want to make the world a better place. That idea of a larger-than-life character was what made me take up this film.

Is there any connection between the character and you?

Certainly, there is. If you look at WWE as well, my track record has been pretty good there too and I have never been on the negative, or the bad side. So yes, there’s a lot that I could relate to with Ferdinand.

Apart from voice-overs, you have been part of both comedy and action films. Is there any one genre that you really like doing?

I have thought about this for a very long time. And you know, it’s taken me some time to realise this. But I know now that I want to be part of movies that tell good stories. I don’t care about what the genre is or what kind of character I am playing. As long as they are good stories, I want to be a part of them, and luckily I have been a part of a few good movies so far.

Is that why you said yes to your role in the upcoming film Bumblebee (from the Transformers franchise)?

Yes. It’s a unique opportunity for me to play the bad for one time. I really like that challenge, and I have been the good guy for so long, it would be nice to be a bad guy for a change.

So does that mean we would see John Cena turn into the antagonist sometime in the future in the wrestling world as well?

Look, as a creative individual, I would love to play a negative character in WWE. But that’s not my job, and I can’t make that decision. There are other people who take that call. The fans need to understand that and respect the fact that I can’t control that. samarth.goyal@htlive.com

I don’t care about what the genre is or what kind of character I am playing. As long as they are good stories, I want to be a part of them

JOHN CENA ACTOR

PHOTO: VALERIE MACON/AFP John Cena is the voice of Ferdinand, the heavy, lovable bull