How SAG-AFTRA Strike Affects John Cena’s WWE Return
John Cena has made an unexpected return to WWE thanks in part to a strike involving the Hollywood world shutting down due to strikes.
There has been a long strike regarding movie and television productions with the writers and actors on the picket lines. The writers have been on strike for over four months while the actors joined them a few months ago as well.
As WWE fans know, John Cena has transitioned to acting over the last four years. Cena has been in a number of high-profile including Fast & Furious movies as well as the popular Barbie movie this summer. Cena has also starred in the Peacemaker series as well. In addition to acting, Cena has also been a host on TV and has been in many commercials as well.
In late August, WWE announced Cena would be appearing on Smackdown throughout September & October. Cena also appeared at WWE Payback last night in Pittsburgh as a guest referee in LA Knight’s win over The Miz. Cena raised Knight’s hand after the match to put him over.
It has been reported by Fightful Select that Cena’s WWE return was “unexpected” even to WWE. They reported that Cena’s availability came up due to the Hollywood strike and WWE reached an agreement for Cena to appear on Smackdown over the next two months.
A WWE higher-up told Fightful that if the strike ends while Cena has bookings in WWE then the company will try to wrap up whatever Cena is involved in and allow him to return to his outside projects. However, Fightful notes that “there is no concern about him missing advertised dates in the event that the strike abruptly ends.”
John Cena Will Wrestle In India This Friday
The WWE return of John Cena heads to the WWE Superstar Spectacle event in Hyderabad, India this Friday, September 8th. It will be Cena’s first time wrestling in India in his 21-year WWE career. Cena will team with the World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins against Imperium’s Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci at that show.
There are also apparently discussions for Cena to face Cody Rhodes in a match. That’s not official by any means, but it’s a rumor at this point.