1977–present
John Cena Now: WWE Veteran Wins Record 17th Championship
John Cena just won a record 17th WWE world championship and promises even more chaos during his final run with the company. Cena defeated Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship on April 20 in the WrestleMania 41 main event. The win breaks Cena’s tie with the legendary Ric Flair for the most world titles in history.
The 47-year-old has promised he will retire from WWE competition sometime this year, meaning it’s likely his last major championship. A longtime WWE babyface, Cena has taken a more antagonistic approach during his recent appearances—criticizing fans during his promos and using unscrupulous methods to win, such as throwing Rhodes into an exposed turnbuckle at WrestleMania.
Playing into his new heel persona, Cena wasn’t in the mood to discuss the accomplishment or his legacy with reporters after the victory. “I’m beginning to sense a pattern here, that you guys are just looking for headlines. So, I’ll give you one: tune into Monday Night Raw to see how I ruin wrestling. And, keep in mind, you are talking to the last real champion,” Cena said.
Who Is John Cena?
John Cena is a 17-time WWE world champion wrestler and actor known for The Suicide Squad and his role in the Fast and Furious movies. Initially calling himself “The Prototype,” Cena captured the Ultimate Pro Wrestling title in 2000 and made his WWE debut in June 2002. He quickly became one of the promotion’s biggest superstars, attracting fans with his “Never Give Up” mantra. In April 2025, he passed Ric Flair for the most WWE world championships in history. Beginning in 2005, Cena expanded his reach with the release of a hip-hop music album and his appearances in movies and on TV. He stars in Season 2 of the Max superhero comedy Peacemaker, premiering in August 2025.
Quick Facts
FULL NAME: John Felix Anthony Cena
BORN: April 23, 1977
BIRTHPLACE: West Newbury, Massachusetts
SPOUSES: Elizabeth Huberdeau (2009–2012) and Shay Shariatzadeh (2020–present)
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Taurus
HEIGHT: 6 ft. 1 in.
Early Life
John Felix Anthony Cena was born on April 23, 1977, in West Newbury, Massachusetts. He is the second of John Sr. and Carol Cena’s five boys.
At an early age, Cena showed a passion for sports and working out. By the time he was 15, he was a regular gym rat. After graduating high school, Cena headed off to Springfield College in Massachusetts to study exercise physiology and prove his worth on the football field. At Springfield, Cena turned himself into a Division III All-American offensive lineman and team captain.
In 2000, despite his father’s wishes, the new college graduate left Massachusetts in seek of a new life in California as a bodybuilder. It wasn’t an easy transition for the 6-foot-1 aspiring star. He had just $500 in his pocket to make it across the country and get settled. To make ends meet, he folded towels and cleaned toilets at a Gold’s Gym in Venice Beach. Since he couldn’t afford an apartment, he shacked up in his 1991 Lincoln Continental.
Wrestling Career
Cena’s turning point came in early 2000, during a casual conversation he had with a wrestler at Gold’s who encouraged him to take classes at Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW), a former World Wrestling Entertainment developmental company.
For Cena, the suggestion of making a go of it as a wrestler wasn’t an entirely outlandish idea. His father John Sr., known as Johnny Fabulous, made a living as a wrestling announcer and businessman. As a kid growing up in suburban Massachusetts, the younger Cena spent many hours glued to the television set as he watched his wrestling heroes such as Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, and Shawn Michaels go at it in the ring.
As a wrestler himself, Cena’s ascension was rapid. Calling himself “The Prototype,” the ambitious Cena captured the UPW title on April 27, 2000, in San Diego. Over the course of the next year, Cena drew the attention of WWE executives, and in 2001, the young entertainer signed a developmental contract with the company to work at Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). He captured the OVW heavyweight title the following February.
Cena made his WWE debut in June 2002 when he signed with the Smackdown roster. Just two years later, he took home the United States Championship, defeating the Big Show in March 2004 at WrestleMania 20. A year later at WrestleMania 21, Cena grappled for the WWE Championship against John “Bradshaw” Layfield, the reigning champion for almost a full year. Cena prevailed for his first world title, cementing him as one of WWE’s leading babyface characters.
Adding to his accolades is his memorable in-ring persona. Cena became known for a variety of gimmicks, including wearing jorts for his matches and taunting opponents by waving a hand in front of their face with his “You Can’t See Me” gesture. (Basketball players Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark memorably flashed the sign during games in the 2023 women’s NCAA tournament.)
To date, Cena has won 17 world championships in WWE—breaking a tie with Ric Flair with his WrestleMania 41 victory over Cody Rhodes for the WWE Undisputed Championship in April 2025. Among the opponents he’s beaten are Randy Orton, Batista (known to some as actor Dave Bautista), and The Rock.
Cena announced in July 2024 that he would retire from WWE competition sometime during 2025.
Movies and TV Shows
Several years into his wrestling career, Cena began to branch out in pop culture. His long-standing affinity for hip-hop led him to release a rap album, You Can’t See Me, in 2005. The recording debuted on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart at No. 15.
Meanwhile, Cena’s popularity in the ring prompted WWE to increase his visibility through its production wing. He starred in the action movies The Marine (2006) and 12 Rounds (2009), the latter featuring the wrestler trying to save his girlfriend from a gang of terrorists in New Orleans.
In 2015, Cena received critical praise for his acting skills in the hit comedy Trainwreck, directed by Judd Apatow and written by the movie’s star, Amy Schumer. Cena played Schumer’s muscle-bound but sensitive boyfriend. “I got my chance to throw my sense of humor out into the world, and at the same time play this hulky guy who’s a softy, which in real life I’m a very emotional guy,” Cena told Business Insider. Later that year he appeared in the Tina Fey–Amy Poehler comedy Sisters and had a small role in Daddy’s Home.
Action Star in Bumblebee, The Suicide Squad, and Fast X
Devoting more time to his screen pursuits, Cena in 2017 co-starred in the war film The Wall, voiced the titular bull of the animated Ferdinand, and rejoined Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg for Daddy’s Home 2. The following year, he enjoyed a prominent role in the raunchy comedy Blockers before returning to action fare with the Transformers spinoff Bumblebee.
Cena then joined Keegan-Michael Key and John Leguizamo to play a trio of wildfire fighters flummoxed by unruly kids in the 2019 family comedy Playing with Fire. In 2021, he was among the cast of the DC Comics movie The Suicide Squad.
Next, Cena made his debut in the globally popular Fast and Furious movie series with F9 (2021). He played Jakob Toretto, the brother of the primary protagonist Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel). Cena reprised the role in 2023’s Fast X, which grossed more than $700 million at the worldwide box office.
More recent Cena movies include 2023’s Barbie as well as the 2024 flicks Argylle, Ricky Stanicky, and Jackpot!
Peacemaker and More TV Shows
Cena has appeared in a variety of dramatic and non-scripted TV projects. In 2016, he served as host for an episode of the popular NBC sketch comedy Saturday Night Live. He also led a pair of revived game shows: Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? airing on Nickelodeon in 2019 and Wipeout on TBS starting in 2021.
Amid his popularity as a wrestler, Cena made cameo appearances as himself on popular series including Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (2007), Hannah Montana starring Miley Cyrus (2010), Parks and Recreation (2015), and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (2020).
In 2022, Cena reprised his antihero character from The Suicide Squad in the Max action-comedy series Peacemaker, which included cameos from DC Universe actors Jason Momoa as Aquaman and Ezra Miller as the Flash. Season 2 of the series is scheduled to begin in August 2025.
Wife
Cena married engineer Shay Shariatzadeh in October 2020. The couple doesn’t have any children.
The pair met at a restaurant in Vancouver in March 2019 while Cena was filming Playing with Fire. They made their red carpet debut for the movie that October. “What’s truly special about this one is that, no matter what projects I’m involved in the future, this one will always have a special meaning because I got to film a special project and meet someone special,” Cena said.
Prior to meeting Shariatzadeh, Cena was married Elizabeth Huberdeau. They wed in July 2009, and when Cena filed for divorce within three years, it reportedly shocked Huberdeau. Their messy separation played out in the media, but they eventually settled in July 2012.
That same year, Cena began dating fellow WWE superstar Nikki Bella. Parts of their relationship played out onscreen in the E! reality series Total Divas. On April 2, 2017, he proposed to Bella after they defeated The Miz and Maryse in a tag team match at Wrestlemania 33. However, Cena and Bella ended their engagement in April 2018.
Net Worth
Celebrity Net Worth estimates Cena’s total fortune at around $80 million. Much of his money stems from his WWE salary. In 2018, Forbes reported that Cena surpassed Brock Lesnar as the highest-paid wrestler in the company with $10 million in yearly earnings. More recently, Cena made an estimated $23 million from his 2024 movie and TV projects—making him the 16th highest-paid Hollywood actor for that year.
2024 Oscars Skit
Cena shocked audience members when he presented the award for Costume Design at the 2024 Oscars ceremony almost fully nude—a reference to the 1974 incident in which a streaker ran onto the stage during the event. After discussing the “plan” for him to streak with host Jimmy Kimmel, Cena waddled onstage using the envelope as cover. After donning a toga reminiscent of Scarlett O’Hara’s curtain dress in Gone With the Wind, he read out the winner. In reality, Cena was wearing nude-colored underwear.
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