This week’s all new episode of WWE After The Bell with host Corey Graves features a sit-down interview with 16-time world champion John Cena, who had the rare chance to share his candid thoughts about the current landscape of professional wrestling.
During the interview, Cena was asked what he believes the current WWE landscape needs, and discussed why modern wrestling fans make it incredibly difficult to find a new Rock or Hogan level megastar.
“It needs what I’m not sure it can produce. The crowd is so mixed that if the company puts its faith behind an individual, the knee jerk reaction of the audience – even if they liked the guy last week – is to say, ‘F*** you, you’re not gonna tell me who I like!’ The audience is also tipping the scales of this not being able to happen. Universal popularity will never happen, because someone will see it, and get on to it and be like, ‘He seems to be getting popular, let’s stop this right now.’ I’ve seen it happen with guys who were really darlings of that underground crew, who make it, and as soon as they make it the rug gets pulled out from under them.”
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Despite this, Cena admits that his perspective is not necessary law – only that it’s the psychology he’s comfortable with because of his personal WWE experience. He also believes it’s perfectly fine with there being what he calls a “segmented” audience, as it can open the door for something to break through creatively.
“When I say there’s no one person at the front, that’s also not bad. I think the business is reaching farther than ever, and will continue to reach farther than ever. Although I’m comfortable in the environment I just explained, maybe we’ve gone into a different thing and I’m just romanticizing those moments that I enjoyed. I think we’re fine with a segmented group of performers. You don’t have one person to go see. If you go to an NXT show, you go to see 8 or 9 people. I don’t think there’s ever been more potential under one roof.”
“I think the best scenario – and take it from a guy who’s done pretty well for himself off this scenario – when they tell you ‘I don’t know what we want tonight’, that’s when the rap guy was born. That’s when things like the U.S. Challenge were born. When they don’t know what they want, they’re giving you the freedom to create. Oh my god, it’s the best! You can now walk into imagination land and do whatever you want. But once again that takes being brave, and doing stupid things and hoping they get over. And maybe they will, and maybe you can wear wristbands when you’re 43.”
Check out more from the clip below, and the full interview with Cena on this week’s WWE After the Bell podcast, available now on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast distributors.