John Cena has gone from a wrestler with a lot of memes, to one of the world’s biggest actors. He’s risen through the ranks very quickly and while he started off in action blockbusters, he’s quickly finding his niche in the comedy genre.
John Cena has a lot of massive roles coming up in the future, but he’s already had some pretty brilliant projects in the past that he’s starred in. We’re taking a look at the top 10 best films that John Cena has ever starred in. And we’re ranking them of course, from worst to best, based on the film overall, not just John’s performance in it.
THE MARINE
This film was one of the earliest in John’s career and certainly reflected that. Produced in part by the WWE, The Marine has become a long-running franchise, although without Cena in the main role for the majority of the films.
This military-based action flick left a lot to be desired. While it did show that the wrestler had some potential on the big screen, this was a pretty standard affair, pulling from many other action films of the decade which were just a lot better.
12 ROUNDS
This next film continued John’s phase of getting cast in a role stereotypical to his build and background. Another action-based film, this one is certainly a step up from The Marine but still cannot be placed any higher on this list.
Once again John put in a commendable performance and showed off that he had the ability to be a major action star. But it was never going to be the action-based roles that would take him to the big leagues.
FERDINAND
This animated feature is really just a fun time. Cena stars as Ferdinand the bull, in a role not too typical for him. This film came at a stage where Cena was starting to explore the types of films that would be available to him.
He’d done some voice acting in the past and he has distinctive enough tones to make this work. There’s absolutely more voice acting roles in John’s future. The film, which featured a pacifist bull that refused to fight, was critically praised although it didn’t do too well with audiences.
DADDY’S HOME
The Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg comedy about stepdads is one that critics absolutely panned but audiences seem to love. The film is funny and typical of a Will Ferrell production down to some great one-liners and slapstick comedy.
Cena plays another dad who’s come back onto the scene, seemingly to threaten the masculinity of the other dads. It’s a great opening scene for him and he excels from there, with Cena re-appearing in the same role the sequel.
PLAYING WITH FIRE
Cena’s latest comedy isn’t exactly lighting the world on fire, but it’s at least a lot of fun for a family to enjoy together. Cena hasn’t really explored this kid-friendly side of comedy much in his film career, so it showcases something different from him.
It’s clear that he’s much more comfortable in an adult setting, as his sense of humor has always tended towards the R rating than something PG. Nevertheless, this is a good family film for a star on the rise that contains some pretty big names.
TOUR DE PHARMACY
This HBO television movie was a surprise hit and documented a fictitious era of history. Starring some of comedy’s biggest and brightest, including Jeff Goldblum, the film told the story of the huge doping scandal of the 80s.
Of course, all of these events are completely made up, with Cena playing one of the struggling cyclists in this troubled time. He’s as brilliant as the rest of the cast and this is exactly the kind of role that the former wrestler was made for. His comedic timing was on full display.
SISTERS
This Amy Poehler and Tina Fey comedy wasn’t some of their best work but was a lot funnier than most of the other comedies on this list. The two sisters, who were polar opposites growing up, learn to rekindle their relationship after being brought back together.
A crazy party ensues at their house, that brings in John Cena, in a way we’ve never seen him before. The tattooed drug dealer is certainly a new look for Cena, but he’s hilarious in the role. The film continued to show his versatility.
TRAINWRECK
By far one of the best films that Cena has starred in to date, Trainwreck put him on the map as a genuine comedy force. The Amy Schumer film promised to showcase a different side of the former wrestler and it certainly did.
One of Amy’s boyfriends, his best scene absolutely comes when he gets into an argument in the cinema. He’s got some brilliant lines and it’s difficult to understand how he can deliver them with a straight face. This was definitely the making of Cena’s comedy career.
BUMBLEBEE
Despite Cena’s comedic roles, he did have another action part very recently, when he stepped into the Transformers franchise. Much like he has been typecast in the past, Cena was given a military role within the film.
However, the movie, which was a bit of a quality resurgence for the franchise, allowed Cena’s character to be developed further than we may typically see from these types of films. The result of this was a genuinely compelling member of the Transformers universe we want to see more of.
BLOCKERS
This coming of age comedy is easily the best role that Cena has taken on so far and the best movie of his career. The story, about a few young women who are just trying to negotiate their way into adulthood, is charming, funny and full of heart.
Cena excels here as an overprotective father who probably is the most emotional character in the whole film. The spying parents are a lot of fun to watch and this is the kind of film that’s going to keep resurfacing for new generations to watch.
