John Cena retired from the WWE in 2025 after more than two decades as a pro wrestler.
The athlete and actor opened up about his legacy in the organization and how he wants fans to remember him.
John has made multiple WWE appearances since his retirement, including as the host of WrestleMania 42 in April 2026.
John Cena has had a legendary career in the WWE. But how does he want to be remembered in wrestling? It’s not exactly what fans would expect.
Longtime followers remember the athlete retiring from the wrestling organization in December 2025, more than 20 years after his 2002 debut. His final performance coincided with the end of a year-long farewell tour.
As he told Good Housekeeping exclusively in an interview in May, he has an unexpected vision for his WWE legacy.
“My goal for my stay in the business is to leave it better than I found it—and my résumé is a byproduct of that,” he shared with us on behalf of his partnership with Tarsus Pharmaceuticals. “I know none of us live forever. Nobody remembers anything. People forget about me. So, my hope for the future is that people forget about me.”
As John continued, he’s not negating everything he’s accomplished. On the contrary, he wants fans to focus on the present and future stars of the organization.
“If [the new WWE] stars have enough gravity, have enough relevance, they should be the ones influencing the audience, the people, in the arena,” he added. “That is my hope, amazingly—that people forget.”
Despite John stepping out of the wrestling ring, he’s still involved with the WWE. Fans all saw him host WrestleMania 42 in April 2026, and he remains a mentor to others.
“I’m always a fan first, and I'm finding new ways to become involved in the WWE, through fandom and through organizational purposes,” he concluded. “I've been lucky enough to be a mentor, to continue to be a mentor. So, there's a lot of irons in the fire. As far as what the future holds for me in wrestling, it's my family. I'll never get away.”
We’ll definitely count on it.
