John Cena Breaks the Internet With Surprising Reaction to Bizarre Death Rumor

Has anyone ever asked you if you’ve heard a wild rumor about yourself, only to have it be so outrageous you can’t help but laugh—and then groan? Well, imagine being John Cena, your name so famous it’s practically a verb, and suddenly you’re facing whispers of your own demise. No, seriously—some corners of the internet were convinced he’d kicked the bucket, and not even the Peacemaker himself could dodge that viral funeral procession. Between hanging up his WWE boots for good and the internet’s obsession with his latest on-screen shenanigans (season two Peacemaker twist, anyone?), Cena has been everywhere lately . But when a podcast host went full TMZ and asked him point-blank about the death hoax, Cena’s reply was less smackdown, more masterclass. It’s got me wondering—how do you stay so unflappable when everyone’s speculating about your afterlife plans? Get ready for a story that’s equal parts hilarious, awkward, and superhumanly classy—but then again, that’s John Cena for you . LEARN MORE

John Cena has been praised online after a clip resurfaced in which a podcast host asked him about a rumour that he had died.

The past few weeks have been incredibly busy for Cena, with his career as a WWE superstar coming to an end with only a few publicised dates to go until his last match ever.

On top of this, the second season of Peacemaker, his R-Rated TV show, which recently went viral for an insane twist, is coming to a hotly anticipated close, so there is as much focus on the wrestler-turned-actor as there has been in years.

Throughout his time as a celebrity, though, Cena has become well known for being one of the most PR-friendly actors around when it comes to interviews.

Cena has the record for the most appearances for Make-a-Wish, is frequently shown giving succinct and thoughtful answers to incredibly hard questions, and was notorious within the WWE for taking more time than anyone to speak to fans.

John Cena is the record appearance maker for Make-A-Wish (WWE via Getty Images)

All of this is to say, to cross the line with Cena and get a response out of him, you have to say some particularly wild sh*t.

A few years ago, when promoting the first season of Peacemaker, Cena appeared on the Pardon My Take podcast.

The podcast, run by Barstool Sports, saw the hosts ask Cena about a social media rumour that he had died of COVID-19.

In response to this, Cena talked about the importance of fact-checking online and was pleasant in his response.

Following this, though, the hosts took things one step further, asking him whether there was a small part of him that ‘wanted to just kinda go along with it for a day?’

This bizarre line of questioning caused Cena to stop them, responding to say: “I know you guys are trying to have some fun. I just lost a really close friend two days ago. So when I say something like that, and you take the smile off your face.

“Loss is a really tough thing, I don’t think, especially at this point… the fragile nature of human life is a headline to grab.

“So, I know what you’re trying to do. I can’t fault you for trying, but in taking a moment to reflect on the passing of a good, close friend of mine…I just don’t think that’s the right avenue for me to go down.”

John Cena appeared on the podcast but was asked some quite bizarre questions (Pardon My Take / YouTube)

Cena’s response to the question has resurfaced after someone went viral for posting it on X, noting how he ‘sets boundaries in an honest and mature way’.

One response said: “What a great, respectful communicator he is. A master of language.”

Others, however, were more critical of the hosts of the podcast.

A fan posted a tweet responding to the clip, saying: “Glad Cena checked them because that’s awful. Bunch of douchebags.”

Another simply said: “What a god awful question.”

LADbible group have contacted Barstool Sports for comment.