John Cena is returning to WWE’s Friday Night SmackDown on the Sept. 1 episode, as confirmed by Ryan Satin of FOX Sports on Monday. Cena’s appearances on WWE programming have been sparse over the past few years, but so far in 2023 he has popped up on an episode of Monday Night Raw, challenged Austin Theory for the United States Championship at WrestleMania 39 and made a surprise appearance at the Money in the Bank premium live event to push for a WrestleMania in London. It’s unclear if he’ll be in action at the show or if he’ll build to a match at an upcoming pay-per-view, but Satin also noted that he’ll be at WWE’s Superstar Spectacle event on Sept. 8 at the GMC Balayogi Indoor Stadium in India.
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“I wish I was still there every day, it’s just my body can’t do it anymore and I don’t wanna give the consumer a bad product,” Cena said on Busted Open Radio in May while reflecting on his most recent WrestleMania match. “That’s another thing that I learned from those veterans. At the time, guys like Eddie (Guerrero) would just risk so much [just in the name of not] giving the consumer a bad product. I don’t care how I feel, I don’t care how I feel physically, I don’t care what baggage I have mentally, when I’m on, they paid good money and I’m gonna go out there and give everything I have and sometimes find it when it’s not there.
“I’m at a point where everything I have, in comparison to the bar that’s been set… what I have is what you saw at WrestleMania 39. That’s what I feel confident that I can deliver, and that’s really nice for here and there, but that’s not every day in WWE. Sports entertainment has raised the bar and I’m humble enough to say that’s awesome, because you’re supposed to leave it better than you found it,” he continued.
WWE’s Premium Live Event Schedule for The Rest of 2023
WWE has four premium live events left for the remainder of 2023. That includes Payback at the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh (Sept. 2), Fastlane at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis (Oct. 7), a yet-to-be-named Saudi Arabia show on Nov. 4 and the annual Survivor Series show at Allstate Arena in Rosemont (Chicago), Illinois on Nov. 25.
Will Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Return to WWE TV Soon?
Due to the ongoing Actors’ Strike, there’s some speculation among fans recently that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson might appear on WWE TV in the near future now that all of his acting roles have been put on pause. However, Brian Gewirtz of Seven Bucks Productions (Johnson’s production company) recently explained on The Masked Man Show why that likely won’t happen.
WWE is not affiliated with any of the guilds and not affiliated with SAG, it’s a bad look for a prominent actor like The Rock, Cena [John Cena], Batista [Dave Bautista] to appear on an entertainment program while there is a strike going on and people are not getting paid and are striking. Yes, it’s not insane, but appearing on television in an entertainment capacity is not a great look when a strike is going,” Gewirtz said.
Could Cena be the first of multiple wrestlers-turned-actors to appear on WWE TV in the near future? Will he be sticking around for more than just one episode? Tell us your predictions in the comments!
