: John Cena’s “heel turn” was kept secret from almost all of his WWE colleagues, even behind the scenes. Triple H and The Rock are already certain that they have created a moment for the ages.
For the first time in 21 years, WWE superstar John Cena has returned to the role of the villain – and it was a big surprise not only for WWE fans.
As reported by the US portal Fightful, Cena’s unexpected “heel turn” on Saturday with an attack on WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and an alliance with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was a closely guarded secret behind the scenes, with only a few people in the know. WWE executive “Triple H” Paul Levesque even made false statements in the internal schedule to ensure that nothing would leak out in advance.
Triple H worked past WWE colleagues
Levesque himself stated at the press conference after the show that he personally supervised the end of the show and not the production team in the truck.
The WWE Chief Content Officer is extremely satisfied with the result: “I’ve been lucky enough to be here for many of the greatest moments in this business over the last 30 years. I don’t know if I’ve ever experienced a more powerful moment.”
The fact that Cena is retiring this year made it even more surprising: “Throughout his career, Cena was the one you never expected to have a moment like this.”
Levesque also highlighted Cena’s courage in breaking with tradition and taking a risk: “You couldn’t blame him if he just rode the wave of nostalgia. But someone like him can also say, ‘Damn, I want to be challenged until the last moment. I want to give it my all and do something new. I want to be scared of it and do it anyway.’ That’s the beauty of John Cena, the willingness to take risks.”
Levesque is already sure that he has created a moment for the ages: ‘There was a moment when Cody was on the floor in the ring and Rock, Cena and Travis Scott were standing on the ramp, and I thought to myself, ’Damn. It doesn’t get any bigger than this. It’s just an epic moment. I think this is one of those nights that people will still remember in 20 years and say, ‘Damn. That night in Toronto was amazing.'”
The Rock was also impressed
WWE icon and Hollywood megastar Johnson put it in a similar way at the post-event press conference: “It was an incredible moment. We as entertainers, whether in wrestling, film or television, live for moments like that. Moments that can move and captivate the audience are what drive us.”
Johnson, who has also been a shareholder in WWE parent company TKO since the beginning of 2024, added: “I love this business. What I felt tonight is on par with iconic angles – some I saw as a kid and others I was later involved in myself. Tonight was one of those moments.”
As reported by Fightful, nothing is known about plans for Johnson to enter the ring himself at this year’s WrestleMania 41. The focus is likely to be on the title fight between Rhodes and Cena, which was fixed for the weekend, and Cena’s historic mission to win the 17th title in his new role and to become the sole record holder of all major world titles in wrestling, ahead of Ric Flair.
It is still unclear when the next step in the story will take place: Cena – who did not make a public statement after No Escape – is not announced for tonight’s TV show RAW. The Rock mentioned at the press conference that he would fly to Africa. Cody Rhodes’ next appearance is scheduled for SmackDown on Friday in Philadelphia – the place where he became WWE Champion last year with a victory over Roman Reigns.
