John Cena admits he got hair transplant surgery after WWE fans 'bullied' him over his visible bald spot

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA: John Cena opened up about the emotional toll of years of ridicule he faced over his bald spot.

Just a day after the 48-year-old made WWE history by clinching his record 17th WWE Championship title at WrestleMania in Las Vegas, Nevada, he appeared live on 'The Pat McAfee Show' to talk about getting a hair transplant.

John Cena admits he underwent hair transplant surgery because fans straight-up bullied him

In a rare moment of vulnerability, John Cena revealed that he underwent hair transplant surgery in November 2024, and the reason wasn’t vanity, as per the New York Post.

Addressing a crowd of WWE fans during the broadcast, Cena didn’t hold back.

“You chant and you make me feel small and you embarrass me,” he said directly. “Y’all don’t know what that’s like. That is straight-up bullying. That’s just not cool. I don’t like it.”

Though he stayed mostly in character, embodying the cocky “heel” persona he’s recently embraced in the ring, Cena’s tone took a sharp turn toward sincerity when he laid out the emotional truth.

He added, “So, thank you for bullying me into getting surgical hair replacement. That’s how far y’all push me.”

John Cena says fans ripped him to shreds for a genetic problem that he can't control

The 'Jackpot' and 'Ricky Stanicky' star explained the technical (and psychological) aspects of the procedure in a little tongue-in-cheek fashion.

“You have to take the [hair] from the side and plant them in on the top. You take the lawn over here and you put it on the dry spot. It just takes a while for it to come in. It’s coming in, man. It’s coming," he explained.

But while the procedure might have been a solution, the root of the issue was much deeper.

"I just saw it on so many bald spot signs. And that’s the thing, when you get [surgery], your hair falls out because the new ones have to grow. So the old one falls out," he said, before adding, "You guys ripped me to shreds for a genetic problem that I can’t control."

John Cena wasn't cool about fans asking him about his bald spot

John Cena isn’t ready to drop the name of the doctor who performed the procedure just yet, not until he’s satisfied with the results. But he’s optimistic.

“Hopefully, in a couple of months, it looks better,” he said, adding, “I got a problem. I try to fix it. That’s what I’m doing.”

Still, he wants fans to understand just how personal this journey has been.

“This isn’t cool. You guys aren’t cool to me. Why do you think I did it? I’m in the [Royal Rumble] trying to win and [fans ask], ‘How’s the bald spot?’ Like, that’s not fair. I can’t control that," Cena stated, before joking, Once it gets better and I’ve got the long flowing locks, I’ll be like, ‘Yo, go to this guy.’” 

“So I’m working on it. Work in progress, work in progress.”