Was John Cena in the Military? The Incredible Story Revealed

Did you see John Cena on WWE TV and think ‘Was John Cena in the Military?” Well, keep reading and find out!

Who is John Cena? John Cena is one of the biggest stars in wrestling history. His nickname of “The Champ” is an apt one. Nobody has won more world championships than John Cena, and he is one of the most recognisable stars in the world. He is also a big advocate for the United States military. But is John Cena in the Military?

Upon further research, the results may surprise you.

To read more about John Cena, check out John Cena Best Matches.

Was John Cena in the Military?

Who is John Cena?

Before we ask ‘was John Cena in the Military?’ we must first look at who John Cena is.

John Cena is a wrestler turned actor, from Boston, Massachusetts. He began wrestling in the late 1990s, inspired by his childhood hero Hulk Hogan and the stars of the WWF attitude era. The larger than life strongmen of the 1980s were his biggest inspiration, and it’s easy to see where that inspiration came from.

John Cena started out as a rapper character, but has been the main man in WWE since beating JBL at Wrestlemania 22 for the WWE Championship. He won the world title in WWE 16 times. This ties him level with Ric Flair as the most world championships in wrestling history (although Ric Flair’s total can be argued as higher).

He has main evented multiple Wrestlemanias, and been involved in some the WWE’s biggest storylines. Matches against wrestlers like Triple H, Brock Lesnar, Edge and CM Punk have main evented pay per views and has made himself and the WWE millions of dollars.

John Cena’s Wrestling Gimmicks

His first gimmick in WWE was as a robotic wrestler called “The Prototype”. Cena wrestled in OVW, the developmental territory that helped make stars like The Boogeyman. He then moved on to be a wrestler with “Ruthless Aggression”. He found fame, however, as the “Doctor of Thuganomics”. A rapping wrestler who used rhymes to cut promo’s on his opponents, and rapping his own theme song.

However, to become a main eventer, he had to change his gimmick. In 2004, he entered a feud with Carlito, and dropped his United States championship to him. In the feud, he was stabbed by Carlito’s friend, Jesus, in a club. This led to John Cena taking a month off to film the movie “The Marine”. But was John Cena in the military, or just playing the part on TV and film?

His new gimmick showed his affection for the US Military. He began to wear camouflage clothing, an homage to the armed forces. John Cena started to salute during his entrance, and spoke about the bravery and valour of the United States army. He began to wear US Army dog tags, which allegedly held great sentimentality to him and his family.

John Cena even announced, live at WWE Extreme Rules 2011, the assassination of Osama Bin Laden by US Navy Seals. Despite being the man to announce the killing, the question still begs: was John Cena in the military?

John Cena in The Marine

After his on-TV stabbing by Carlito’s friend Jesus, John Cena went on to star in his first movie. The Marine is a WWE studios movie, about a Marine who has been discharged from active forces, who has to protect his family from outside invasion. But John Cena was not the first choice for the Marine.

Former WWE Champion and WWE Hall of famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was the first choice as the lead. However, after Austin left WWE in 2004, Randy Orton was considered for the role. Orton turned down the role, due to his real life dishonourable discharge from the Marines prior to his wrestling career.

This gave the role to John Cena, who was on a trajectory of becoming the new top star in WWE. The movie itself was a mild success, earning $22 million on a $15 budget. The move also prompted a change in John Cena’s character in the ring, when he returned after a month hiatus.

John Cena began wearing army coloured camouflage, as well as dog tags that carry great meaning to him, but never revealed. He also began using a salute in the ring and during his entrances. He revealed in an interview the true meaning of the salute.

“It’s a salute for loyalty to those that stand by me, that have been doing it for years.” John Cena revealed as the reason behind his salutes.

Was John Cena in the military?

Despite having starred as a Marine in movies, and with an army persona on TV, John Cena was never in the military. He has never served as an active serviceman, and merely retains an intense respect for all people serving their countries.

Before he was a wrestler, he had a number of jobs. He worked at a Gold’s gym, where he was discovered and trained to become a wrestler. He also worked as a driver, as well as trained to be a bodybuilder before making a living as a wrestler. Cena has since gone on to star in multiple movies as an actor, such as “Train Wreck” and “The Suicide Squad”. John Cena also released a rap album “You Can’t See Me”, and also rapped his won theme music in WWE.