After a dramatic return at WWE Money In The Bank 2021, what does the future hold for John Cena inside the ring? Cast your minds back a decade or so, and face of the company John Cena was embroiled in a bitter feud with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, returning to WWE on-loan from Hollywood. Cena resented his opponent's halfhearted, part-timer attitude to wrestling, criticizing The Rock for only visiting the company that made him famous when movie schedules permitted. Life has a curious sense of irony, and at Money In The Bank 2021, John Cena came back to WWE following an extended hiatus due to his involvement in star-studded projects such as The Suicide Squad, Peacemaker and F9.
Despite (another) controversial Charlotte Flair victory over Rhea Ripley and a hefty dose of outage outrage directed toward Peacock, Money In The Bank 2021 proved a solid show, with Big E capturing the titular briefcase after a great ladder-filled bout, and Nikki A.S.H. a deserving winner in the women's contest. Roman Reigns and Edge made the most of a big-match atmosphere in the main event, but it would be events after the Tribal Chief's victory that grabbed headlines. In a double-swerve, Reigns' former SHIELD comrade, Seth Rollins, emerged to challenge for the Universal Championship, only to get attacked by a recovered Edge. As Roman declared himself free of worthy challengers, out came John Cena to a mammoth ovation.
WWE's endgame appears to be the long-rumored Universal Championship match between Roman Reigns and John Cena at Summerslam on August 21. Vince McMahon and his merry band of sports entertainers have done an excellent job building Roman as WWE's top heel, and the man himself is enjoying far and away the best period of his career. With Reigns in such a strong position (in kayfabe and otherwise), WWE is rapidly running out of realistic challengers. The Big Dog pinned Edge and Daniel Bryan simultaneously at Wrestlemania, and has now asserted his dominance over the Rated-R Superstar. Rey Mysterio and Kevin Owens both fell short in previous attempts, Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro (sadly) haven't been built enough, and WWE wouldn't want Rollins and recent returnee Finn Bálor to take the inevitable loss. John Cena, on the other hand, elevates Reigns with his mainstream appeal, but can take a loss knowing jobs are lined up in Hollywood. He's the perfect candidate.
As for why WWE has turned to Cena for its Summerslam 2021 main event, who better to revive flagging ratings? WWE's main roster product (RAW specifically) has endured record lows during the pandemic, continuing a more long-standing slide. Additionally, rival company AEW recently topped WWE's Monday showcase in a key demographic, giving Vince another reason for concern. Bringing back big names (and few are bigger than John Cena) is almost guaranteed to boost RAW viewership and alleviate those troubles, and with WWE bringing fans back into its arenas, Summerslam presents the idea time for a soft reboot.
Of course, John Cena is not your average WWE employee, with a schedule busier and more restrictive than most. That doesn't seem to be preventing appearances on weekly TV, however, as Cena is confirmed in advance for the post-MITB episode of RAW. Even if Big Match John doesn't appear consistently in the run-up to Summerslam, he'll seemingly have a significant presence in the promo back-and-forth with Roman Reigns. The Suicide Squad releases July 30th, so marketing duties could limit Cena's screen time before the big match. With that said, WWE isn't averse to a bit of cross-promotion (as seen recently with Army of the Dead), so perhaps Cena's return is partly intended to promote James Gunn's upcoming DC effort.
Assuming Cena does the job to Reigns this coming August, he'll probably be straight out of WWE's door when the match is done. Now officially a part-timer, Cena is slated for upcoming Matthew Vaughn spy thriller Argylle, which reportedly films in the coming months, leaving only a short window for John to get his wrestling fix.