Post by Next Man’s Knowing Rock on Oct 29, 2014 20:41:45 GMT -5
variety.com/2014/film/news/how-john-cena-is-going-hollywood-to-attract-new-fans-to-wwe-with-judd-apatow-amy-poehler-tina-fey-amy-schumer-1201336538/
Total fluff piece. Salient quotes/points:
Presenting a different aspect of himself is a prime purpose for Cena in making movies these days. In the past, he was understandably stereotyped as the action guy. “But I don’t think I work tremendously well in action because people see me in action every week without fail,” he said in a rare sit-down interview exclusive to Variety. “If I’m the shining white knight in the movies, that’s kind of the same thing. Audiences aren’t getting anything special or different.”
Total fluff piece. Salient quotes/points:
Presenting a different aspect of himself is a prime purpose for Cena in making movies these days. In the past, he was understandably stereotyped as the action guy. “But I don’t think I work tremendously well in action because people see me in action every week without fail,” he said in a rare sit-down interview exclusive to Variety. “If I’m the shining white knight in the movies, that’s kind of the same thing. Audiences aren’t getting anything special or different.”
Despite his popularity as a wrestler, he was still a virtual unknown to Apatow and Jason Moore (“Pitch Perfect”), who directed “The Nest.” While both roles called for an imposing, athletic figure, Cena still had to audition to land the parts.
“I wasn’t so familiar with his other work, so I had no bias,” Apatow says. “I just saw him as an actor who was riotously funny. We read a bunch of people, and he was by far the funniest. Then he came and did a table read before we shot the movie, and got more laughs than anyone.”
That impressed Apatow enough to recommend Cena to Moore and other filmmakers, which landed him “The Nest,” in which Fey and Poehler play estranged sisters who throw a party in the house their parents are about to sell.
“He is a great improviser,” Apatow says. “He has a great sense of humor, and is the most professional person I have ever met.”
But Apatow soon grasped who he was dealing with while on set in New York. “Whenever we were between shots, he would be inundated by fans and kids,” Apatow recalls. “We all looked at each other and realized we were also working with this athlete that people idolized.”
“I wasn’t so familiar with his other work, so I had no bias,” Apatow says. “I just saw him as an actor who was riotously funny. We read a bunch of people, and he was by far the funniest. Then he came and did a table read before we shot the movie, and got more laughs than anyone.”
That impressed Apatow enough to recommend Cena to Moore and other filmmakers, which landed him “The Nest,” in which Fey and Poehler play estranged sisters who throw a party in the house their parents are about to sell.
“He is a great improviser,” Apatow says. “He has a great sense of humor, and is the most professional person I have ever met.”
But Apatow soon grasped who he was dealing with while on set in New York. “Whenever we were between shots, he would be inundated by fans and kids,” Apatow recalls. “We all looked at each other and realized we were also working with this athlete that people idolized.”
Anyone who comes to know Cena is left with the same impression: He’s punctual to every meeting, unfailingly polite and eager to please his bosses, sponsors and fans, often sitting for multiple hours to sign autographs or take photos. He rarely appears at parties, not even those hosted by WWE, and is more focused on being a role model. For years, his mantra has been “Hustle, Loyalty, Respect,” a slogan that appears on his merchandise.
“I’m very close to what you see on TV,” Cena says.
Cena’s also a company man to the core: When asked to take off the baseball cap that’s branded with his signature “You Can’t See Me” move — part of the brightly colored uniform he wears in the WWE ring — he always declines. “They don’t pay me to promote my hair cut,” he says.
Cena has wrestled on TV for WWE for 12 years and is a mainstay of the company’s storylines. He’s the good guy in a cast of over-the-top characters, and is most popular with kids, which helps keep them engaged with the brand as they grow up. Whereas some of the company’s stars change their personae, and “turn heel,” as it’s called, Cena won’t shed his current image.
“When you do that, everything you said, everything you stand for gets erased,” Cena says. “It’s a poor business decision.” He keeps meetings like one with an eight-year-old boy who beat cancer twice in the back of his mind. “He was shy and reserved but simply said, ‘I never give up because you tell me not to.’ It’s tough to win that eight-year-old kid back (with heel turns). I don’t want to lose them. Athletics has become such a business. Everything is circulated around the almighty dollar. It’s tough to find people to look up to.”
“I’m very close to what you see on TV,” Cena says.
Cena’s also a company man to the core: When asked to take off the baseball cap that’s branded with his signature “You Can’t See Me” move — part of the brightly colored uniform he wears in the WWE ring — he always declines. “They don’t pay me to promote my hair cut,” he says.
Cena has wrestled on TV for WWE for 12 years and is a mainstay of the company’s storylines. He’s the good guy in a cast of over-the-top characters, and is most popular with kids, which helps keep them engaged with the brand as they grow up. Whereas some of the company’s stars change their personae, and “turn heel,” as it’s called, Cena won’t shed his current image.
“When you do that, everything you said, everything you stand for gets erased,” Cena says. “It’s a poor business decision.” He keeps meetings like one with an eight-year-old boy who beat cancer twice in the back of his mind. “He was shy and reserved but simply said, ‘I never give up because you tell me not to.’ It’s tough to win that eight-year-old kid back (with heel turns). I don’t want to lose them. Athletics has become such a business. Everything is circulated around the almighty dollar. It’s tough to find people to look up to.”
“It’s clear that he’s engaged on a level beyond just the day’s scene work,” says Erik Baiers, Universal’s senior VP of production. “He’s inquisitive of the business and the studio system and how movies get made. He’s in it to win.”
“We didn’t know John beyond his wrestling career and the action films, but he was a total revelation,” says Universal’s co-president of production, Peter Cramer. “Judd has an eye for comedy casting. Right away there was a good stamp on the guy. There’s no pretense to him. He’s there to do the work. We hope to find more movies to do with him.”
“We didn’t know John beyond his wrestling career and the action films, but he was a total revelation,” says Universal’s co-president of production, Peter Cramer. “Judd has an eye for comedy casting. Right away there was a good stamp on the guy. There’s no pretense to him. He’s there to do the work. We hope to find more movies to do with him.”
Even if his new comedies don’t do well, he still had that meeting with Apatow and Schumer as a fond memory.
“If nothing else,” he says, “it was very cool to sit down with them, be a goof, and not get booed out of the room.”
“If nothing else,” he says, “it was very cool to sit down with them, be a goof, and not get booed out of the room.”
