John Cena Teases Final Six Months in Wrestling After Divisive Heel Turn [Exclusive]
86After a shocking heel turn that fractured the WWE Universe, John Cena is opening up about his final months in the ring — and what fans can expect before the lights go out for good. In a new interview with Collider's Steve Weintraub while promoting his upcoming action film Heads of State, Cena reflected on his farewell tour, which has reached its halfway point, and teased that even more seismic shifts may be coming. Cena's shocking heel turn, which led to him becoming the greatest WWE Champion of all time at WrestleMania 42 earlier this year, was initially met with acclaim from fans. But the last few months have been a bit of a sticky point, with some fans critical of the tone and character work done by Cena.
However, this Saturday at Night of Champions in Saudi Arabia, Cena takes on CM Punk, one of his greatest ever rivals, in a dream match fans have been desperate for. Last week, Cena cut a scorching promo on Punk, reminiscent of Punk's own "worked shoot" promo from 2011 on Cena, and eviscerated the Best in the World. It was a direction fans were delighted to see, and Cena hinted that the audience reactions so far have played a part in what we were seeing unfold week on week. When Weintraub asked how far out the WWE plans storylines, he told Collider:
“I don't want to spoil any of the stuff for the final year, but I think your question is great. I've been in a lot of avenues of entertainment. I've read the morning news, I’ve hosted award shows, I've had slime poured all over me. I've done episodic television. I've been able to be on screen. I've been able to be on your phone, and I've been in arena life. There is no more adaptable form of storytelling than WWE. WWE can change a story as it happens live. You're seeing, so far over the farewell tour dates, the 18 of 36 so far, we've made a ton of pivots, a ton of pivots right there in the moment.”
Cena noted that, in his final six months — his run is set to conclude in December — there would be plenty of pivots on the road to the end. He went on to explain:
“As we get close to the end of this thing, what dictates those pivots is the audience, and I think the audience will begin to feel differently, because now we are truly coming to the end. So, if you ever had a voice to use, if you ever wanted to say something, I hate to steal my own cliché, but the time is now. I look forward to the road ahead because the audience is going to dictate the direction we go. I think it's a wonderful time to be a fan. I think a lot of different talent are being able to capitalize on all we're doing, and I applaud the WWE for always being able to think extended but pivot on a dime in a moment, as it happens. I think that's their strongest suit.”
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