'I’m not a commodity': John Cena reveals he ignored his agency's advice to skip ‘Barbie’ cameo

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: John Cena, the WWE legend and action star, did not listen to his agency when they told him to avoid a cameo role in Greta Gerwig’s 'Barbie' movie.

The agency feared that playing a mermaid Barbie would hurt his chances of getting more lead roles in the future. But Cena had a different perspective.

John Cena says 'I’m a human being, not a commodity' after the agency advised him against doing a cameo in 'Barbie'

John Cena revealed on 'The Howard Stern Show' that he took the opportunity to appear in 'Barbie' as a challenge and a chance to show his versatility.

He said, “[The agency is] just going on what they know. And what they know is, ‘This entity, this commodity gravitates towards these things, we should stay in this lane.’'

"But I’m not a commodity. I’m a human being, and I operate under the construct of every opportunity is an opportunity,” he added.

How did John Cena land the mermaid role in 'Barbie'?

Cena was working on his role in 'Fast X' on the same studio lot where 'Barbie' was being filmed. He bumped into Margot Robbie, the star and producer of 'Barbie', who invited him to join the cast for a day.

“Margot was like, ‘We’ll make you a mermaid. You’ll be in it for half a day.’ Yeah, sure,” Cena said.

“But I think the perspective from an agency standpoint was, ‘This is beneath you,’ which I get that. But also to the agency’s credit, immediately they acquiesced, and I was like, ‘No we’re going to do it,’ but all they can do is offer their guidance,” Cena said.

John Cena’s cameo in 'Barbie' paid off big-time

John Cena’s cameo as the mermaid 'Barbie' alongside pop star Dua Lipa, lasted less than a minute in the movie. But it was enough to make an impression on the audience and the critics.

 'Barbie' became a huge success, earning $1.4 billion worldwide and becoming the highest-grossing film of 2023 and the most profitable film in Warner Bros history. It also received eight Oscar nominations, including best picture.

 He said, “They’re not ultimately making the choice. And their guidance is… ‘Truly trickle down economics from this may take you out of these lead lap slots.’ And I get all that. I’ve always operated under the philosophy that good work gets you another chance," Variety reported.