WWE’s John Cena: I drank three beers before WrestleMania 34
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John Cena has revealed he had three beers before taking on The Undertaker in a surprise match at WrestleMania 34.
Cena took on the iconic WWE wrestler at the event in 2018 before both stars retired from the sport. Cena took his bow in 2021 and The Undertaker, real name Mark Calaway, retired in 2020. Cena has now said he had three beers ahead of the clash.
“Everybody is chilled and watched the show,” he told Pat McAfee on his podcast Then I made great friends with some people who traveled from Australia, people who traveled from across the US, buying each other beers.
“Literally, I crushed three tall drafts before they told me The Undertaker was there and I’d to hop the barricade and go wrestle The Undertaker. That was a great experience for me ‘cause I got to be something I admired, something I am, I got to be a fan.”
Cena is now an accomplished actor and despite saying he has retired from the sport, he teased that he could be back.
On Twitter he write: “Words cannot describe how appreciative I am that the @WWEUniverse allowed me the opportunity to return and perform.
“Thank you staff, superstars, and most of all FANS for giving me an unforgettable summer at “home” with my “family”. The journey takes me away now but I’ll C U soon [sic].”
John Cena’s Net Worth Has Skyrocketed Since Becoming Peacemaker—Here’s How Much He Makes
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As one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, it’s no surprise that John Cena’s net worth is so impressive. But what may be less well known to fans is just how much he makes today—plus, how much of it comes from ventures aside from wrestling.
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Cena—whose full name is John Felix Anthony Cena Jr.—was born in April 1977 in West Newbury, Massachusetts. Cena was one of five boys born to John and Carol Cena. His older brother, Stephen, was born in 1974, making Cena the second eldest sibling to their other brothers Dan, Matt and Sean. As a teenager, Cena attended Central Catholic High School in Lawrence, Massachusetts before transferring to Cushing Academy. He went on to enroll at Springfield College after graduating from the private prep boarding school. During this time, Cena played on the college football team, where he was an NCAA Division III All-American center lineman. He wore the number 54, which he would eventually use again on his WWE gear.
After graduating from college in 1998 with a degree in exercise physiology, Cena began to pursue a career as a bodybuilder. At the time, Cena also started working as a limousine driver to make ends meet. He was 22 years old when he decided to enroll at Rick Bassman’s Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW) Academy in California, where he trained to become a professional wrestler until March 2001. But before leaving the UPW, Cena also made his unofficial debut with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), known at the time as the World Wrestling Federation (WWF). Over the next decade, Cena would land amongst the WWE’s most notable acts alongside pro wrestlers like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.
Signing with the WWE also presented Cena with the opportunity to branch into film and television. WWE Studios—a division of WWE that produces motion pictures—financed Cena’s first movie, The Marine, which premiered in 2006. His second film, 12 Rounds, was also produced by WWE Studios in 2009. Cena went on to star in comedies like 2015’s Trainwreck, Sisters and Daddy’s Home before reprising his role in Daddy’s Home 2 in 2017. In the same year, Cena appeared in the war drama The Wall. He also voiced characters in animated films, such as 2017’s Surf’s Up 2: WaveMania and Ferdinand.
Since then, Cena has landed leading roles in movies like 2018’s Transformers prequel, Bumblebee, along with 2019’s Playing With Fire, where he played fire superintendent Jake Carson. The actor also joined notable franchises—including Fast & Furious, in which he played the brother of Vin Diesel’s character in 2019’s F9, and the DC Comics universe, where he stars as superhero Peacemaker. Cena debuted the latter role in 2021’s The Suicide Squad, directed by James Gunn, and reprises it in 2022’s standalone series spinoff Peacemaker on HBO Max.
Now that we know where Cena’s been—and where his career is headed—let’s dive into some details about John Cena’s net worth and salary throughout the years below.
What is John Cena’s WWE salary?
John Cena has been a pro wrestler with the WWE since the early 2000s. His first WWE match was a SmackDown! try-out against Mikey Richardson in October 2000, which he lost. He got a second chance the following year at another Smackdown! taping against Aaron Aguilera. This time, Cena won the match and went on to sign a developmental contract with the WWE.
In 2001, Cena was assigned to the Ohio Valley Wrestling division of the WWE, where he wrestled under the ring name “The Prototype” and held the OVW Heavyweight Championship title for three months in 2001. For the rest of the year, Cena tried out for the main WWE roster a total of four times before getting called up in 2002 alongside OVW’s legendary Class of 2002, which included Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton and David Michael Batista Jr. He went on to make his WWE television debut in June 2002 on an episode of SmackDown!, where he answered an open challenge by Kurt Angle.
Cena quickly became a fan-favorite for rapping and trash-talking his opponents, landing the nickname “The Doctor of Thuganomics.” By 2004, Cena was a WWE Championship winner, a title he went on to win a number of times over the years. As of 2022, Cena has won the WWE Championship a record-holding 13 times. He is also a five-time United States Champion, a four-time world tag team champion, a two-time Royal Rumble match winner, a one-time Money in the Bank match winner.
After becoming a free agent in 2017, Cena has made part-time appearances with the WWE. But in 2021, the wrestler surprised fans when he announced a return to wrestling. “I didn’t want to really leave in the first place but I was faced with a bold choice and that bold choice is try your hand at another way of entertaining people through movies and television,” he told Forbes in August 2021. “But if you take that risk, then you can’t be on the WWE in a full capacity. I could speak maybe or I could be an announcer but you can’t participate. You can’t have matches because the insurance companies bound you to the production.”
“This is the first time,” he added. “I’ve been filming movies a lot and that’s why I’ve been away. This is the first time I got a break. I have this block of time, so instead of taking a deep breath and kind of letting it all sink in, I wanted to go home and see my family in WWE, so back to the ring I go!”
With Cena’s return to wrestling, many are curious to know how much Cena makes from the WWE. Well, according to The Mirror, John Cena’s WWE salary is an estimated $8.5 million per year. Keep in mind that this is only Cena’s base pay, so it’s possible that Cena’s salary from wrestling can turn out to be even higher depending on the season.
What is John Cena’s net worth?
According to Celebrity Net Worth, John Cena’s net worth is an estimated $60 million as of 2022. In addition to his massive $8.5 million base salary from wrestling with the WWE, Cena’s net worth is made up of earnings from his many film and TV projects throughout the years. These include appearances in movies like 2018’s Bumblee, 2019’s F9, 2021’s The Suicide Squad and, of course, his first standalone DC spinoff in HBO Max’s Peacemaker in 2022.
From Wrestling Rings to Wedding Rings! Who Is Peacemaker Star John Cena’s Wife, Shay Shariatzadeh?
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They say the heart is a muscle, and John Cena certainly knows a thing or two about muscles. Having tied the knot last year, the WWE veteran’s heart belongs to his wife, Shay Shariatzadeh. Despite his larger-than-life fame, the couple have kept their romance largely out of the limelight, save for a couple of red carpet appearances and the occasional interview comment.
“What’s truly special about this one is that, no matter what projects I’m involved in in the future, this one will always have a special meaning because I got to film a special project and meet someone special,” he told Entertainment Tonight in 2019 of meeting “beautiful” Shariatzadeh while filming Playing With Fire.
Since they met during filming, it’s only fitting that Shariatzadeh supports the wrestling icon-turned-actor no matter what his acting career brings. For instance, in his most recent role as the titular supervillain in HBO Max series Peacemaker (which premiered Jan. 13), Cena sings in nothing but underwear for one sexy scene—something his wife made her peace with.
“My wife is the most wonderful woman on the face of the planet for being cool with… something like that,” he said on the Jan. 12 episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, while his wife looked on from the audience. “When I say, ‘Hey, today at work I’m going to be singing in my underwear’—and maybe if you watch Peacemaker, you might find out it’s less than my underwear—and she’s like, ‘Hey, go get ‘em, give ‘em your best.’ That’s a person confident in self in a trusting relationship.”
Here’s what we know about John Cena‘s wife, Shay Shariatzadeh, the woman that the bodybuilder has built a life with.
Related: Everything You Need to Know About Chris Pratt and Katherine Schwarzenegger’s Intimate Wedding
Who is John Cena’s wife, Shay Shariatzadeh?
Shariatzadeh is an Iranian-born Canadian citizen who attended college in Vancouver. Unlike Cena, who’s been in the spotlight since the early 2000s, she keeps a low profile and doesn’t have a public Instagram presence.
“The strongest and most hard working woman I know is my mother,” she said of her upbringing in a Q&A with her former company, Avigilon, for International Women’s Day in 2019, later adding, “She is a surgeon who worked day and night so we could have a good life. While she was at the peak of her career, she gave it all up to move her family to Canada to give us a better future.”
How did John Cena meet his wife?
The pair’s romance heated up after they met in Vancouver while Cena was shooting the movie Playing With Fire. They were first photographed holding hands in March 2019, and later made their red carpet debut at the film’s premiere in October of the same year. While the wrestler mainly remained tight-lipped about their romance, he did say to Entertainment Tonight on the carpet: “It’s a wonderful day for a movie premiere and I got a beautiful date.”
Related: Fast, Furious and Flush! John Cena’s Net Worth Is Bigger Than His Biceps
How long has John Cena been married to Shay Shariatzadeh?
As of Peacemaker‘s premiere in January 2021, the pair have been married for just over a year. After keeping their relationship almost entirely out of the public eye, Cena surprised fans when he tied the knot with Shariatzadeh in a private ceremony in Tampa, Fla. on Oct. 12, 2020.
Related: Who Is Denzel Washington’s Wife? Get to Know His Leading Lady, Pauletta Washington!
What does John Cena’s wife do for a living?
Shariatzadeh is an engineer who reportedly attended the University of British Columbia from 2008 to 2013, based on her now-deleted LinkedIn profile, and has a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering. She previously worked as a product manager at Avigilon, a Motorola Solutions Company in Vancouver, and as of 2020 was reportedly working for Sonatype, an enterprise software company.
“I have always enjoyed math and physics,” she previously told Aviglon of her career path. “My brother studied engineering in school, and I remember one day he came home with a project and it was an autonomous car—and that was it! I decided to study Engineering.”
How old is Shay Shariatzadeh, John Cena’s wife?
At 32, Shariatzadeh is 12 years younger than the 44-year-old Cena.
How many times has John Cena been married?
This is Cena’s second marriage, as he first married Elizabeth Huberdeau, who he reportedly met in high school, in 2009. He filed divorce papers in 2012 after three years of marriage.
Was John Cena married to Nikki Bella?
Following the end of his first marriage, Cena began a high-profile, six-year relationship with fellow wrestling star Nikki Bella, some of which was documented for her E! show Total Bellas. While they got engaged at WrestleMania 33 in 2018, where he presented her with an engagement ring in the wrestling ring, they didn’t end up walking down the aisle. The pair called off their engagement a year later, telling Us Weekly in a joint statement at the time: “While this decision was a difficult one, we continue to have a great deal of love and respect for one another.”
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They later split for good in 2018, and Bella has since moved on with Dancing With the Stars pro Artem Chigvintsev, her partner on Season 25 of the show. The couple got engaged in November 2019 and welcomed son Matteo in July 2020, just a day before her sister Brie Bella welcomed her second child with husband Bryan Danielson. Despite her highly publicized split from Cena, Nikki told Us Weekly in 2020 that they will be “tied forever” and said he called her and Brie after they both gave birth.
Does John Cena have kids?
While the actor doesn’t have kids yet, starting a family might be in his future. Although he’s previously wrestled with the decision and been vocal about not wanting children, he told The Sun in June 2021 that he’d had a change of heart. “I’m a little bit older, a bit wiser… and I think part of that is being a parent, so we’ll see,” he explained. “I’m realizing there is life and life exists and it’s beautiful.”
Next, Check Out John Cena’s Best Quotes on Love, Success and Being Yourself
John Cena Talks Possible WrestleMania 38 Appearance, Says He’s ‘Not Done’ with WWE
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Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File
John Cena appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Tuesday and expressed doubt about appearing at WrestleMania 38 in April while also noting that he’s “not done with WWE by a long shot” (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc.):
“WrestleMania is usually in the cusp of late March, early April. I don’t know if I’m going to make it this year. And that’s a good conundrum to have because there’s a lot of good opportunity coming up, which I would love to take and if all those things line up, I don’t know if I’ll be able to make WrestleMania.
“But I will tell you and everybody watching, I’m not done with WWE by a long shot. That’s my home, I love it. I was able to go back during the summer for a few months and entertain audiences when they welcomed audiences back to arenas, so I’ve far from had my last performance.”
The last time Cena appeared in a WWE ring was Sept. 10, when he, Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio won a six-man tag team match over The Bloodline in a dark main event at SmackDown.
In August, Cena lost to WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns at SummerSlam.
Cena was talking to Ellen DeGeneres to promote the series Peacemaker on HBO Max.
The wrestler-turned-actor has been busy outside of the ring lately, appearing in three movies released in 2021 (F9: The Fast Saga, The Suicide Squad, Vacation Friends). He’ll also appear in two projects in production (Argylle, The Independent).
In other words, Cena simply may not have the time to make WWE cameos right now.
WrestleMania 38 will take place at AT&T Stadium on April 2 and 3 in Arlington, Texas.
Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below (warning: some language NSFW).
‘Peacemaker’: John Cena Breaks It Down In Opening Credits Sequence For HBO Max Series
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John Cena’s Peacemaker shows off his moves in the opening credits sequence for the newly released HBO Max series.
On Friday, writer and director James Gunn brought in the weekend by dropping a clip of the show’s upbeat opening, which begins with the Cena dancing to Wig Wam’s “Do Ya Wanna Taste It.”
“Due to an incredibly popular request, here are the opening credits of #Peacemaker,” Gunn tweeted.
Peacemaker, produced by Peter Safran and starring Cena in the title role, explores the continuing story of the character in the aftermath of Gunn’s 2021 DC film The Suicide Squad. It’s about a man who believes in peace at any cost, no matter how many people he has to kill to get it.
The series, which made its debut on Thursday Jan, 13, also features Danielle Brooks as Adebayo, Freddie Stroma as Vigilante, Jennifer Holland as Harcourt, Chukwudi Iwuji as Murn, Steve Agee as Economos and Robert Patrick as Auggie Smith.
The opening sequence grows from Cena’s solo to a larger ensemble dance featuring Brooks, Stroma, Holland and more. They swing their arms over their head, shuffle and pelvic thrust in unison.
Peacemaker premiered with three episodes and new installments will drop on HBO Max weekly through Feb. 17.
Gunn wrote all eight episodes of Peacemaker and directed five, including the first. Gunn, Safran and Matt Miller serve as executive producers, with Cena as co-executive producer. Peacemaker is produced by Gunn’s Troll Court Entertainment and The Safran Company in association with Warner Bros. Television.
Watch the dance-filled sequence below.