John Cena is a name that has been synonymous with money for more than two decades. For the most part of this century so far, the name was linked with WWE, where he made millions. In fact, during his time in the ring, Cena remained the company’s poster buy and the top guy for over a decade. However, the 16-time WWE champion wasn’t the owner of his own name. It was WWE owner Vince McMahon who owned the rights to the name John Cena.
The latter half of the 2010s saw the WWE icon becoming a part-time wrestler and a full-time actor. However, even in the acting world, the wrestling legend turned out to be a bankable name. In his short Hollywood career so far, John Cena has impressed everyone with his actions and made millions.
Well, now that John Cena isn’t linked to WWE as he used to be, who owns the rights to that name?
Vince McMahon/WWE company still owns the rights to the name John Cena
When a talent joins WWE, most of the time, Vince McMahon gives him/her a new ring name. And if the real name is used, the company tries to own the rights to that name. The reason behind that is the said talent could become the sole property of WWE.
As to The Cenation Leader, he began his pro wrestling career with the WWE company. He used his real name, which means the rights to the name John Cena were owned by WWE. During his time there, Vince McMahon used the name to make millions over the years.
And as a matter of fact, the company, in 2023, still owns the name. Even though John Cena is no longer bound to WWE, he doesn’t own the rights to his own name. Some amount of whatever he makes using that name goes into the pocket of Vince McMahon.
However, the 16-time WWE champion has no issues with that. In one of his past interviews, John Cena opened up about Vince McMahon owning the rights to his name and said this:
“I don’t mind kicking a percentage of my earnings to the person [Mr. McMahon] who gave me a chance… If anything, that’s a sign of respect and I owe that guy a lot.”
The 16-time world champion is rumored to wrestle a match at this year’s WrestleMania
Despite having a busy Hollywood schedule, John Cena wrestles at least one match per year in WWE. In fact, he has done that since the year he made his debut in 2002. And if the reports are true, Cena could be appearing at this year’s Showcase of Immortals.
According to numerous reports, John Cena will attend WrestleMania 39 which is set to take place in Hollywood. As to who he will face, Austin Theory and Logan Paul are the two names being talked about. And with the road to WrestleMania 39 officially begun, it’s just a matter of time before he makes a return.
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