John Cena Says He Hasn’t Helped Roman Reigns, Talks Conversations He’s Had with AJ Styles, If He Should Have Been a Heel in WWE, More

WWE ‘free agent’ John Cena recently spoke with Bleacher Report and below are some interview highlights:

BR: Have you ever helped other WWE superstars deal with their own “controversial” reactions? Roman Reigns comes to mind.

“I haven’t [helped Roman], and that’s not because I don’t want to. And I think that’s a testament to Roman Reigns’ ability to handle the audience. You need pretty broad shoulders. That he hasn’t had to come to anyone else for advice shows exactly how strong he is.”

BR: Who was a younger person who recently came to you for advice?:

“Well, younger—I mean, he’s just a few weeks from me—but I can remember when AJ Styles came in, and he was just familiar with presenting himself a different way. And we sat down and had many a lengthy conversation about the differences and similarities between other spots and here. And from that, I think he took a lot of material away to present himself better.”

BR: What was he frustrated about?

“Not necessarily frustrated. But you tie your shoe one way for 15 to 18 years, and then you come into a place that says to tie your shoe differently. Sometimes you don’t understand all of that. So it was great to be able to sit down and have an open, intelligent conversation with someone without anyone taking things personally—just talking about the environment and making oneself relevant in that environment.”

BR: I was listening to a shoot interview with Jim Cornette, where he said that he always saw you as a Ric Flair-type villain character. Have you ever stopped to think about how your career could have been if you hadn’t gone in the direction you did?

“No. And I think that any sort of hindsight, especially in this industry, is a waste of time, and time is extremely valuable. I don’t control that. People ask me to do something, and it is our job, as entertainers, to do the best that we can to accomplish that goal. What I get upset about in this business is that so many people talk about the ‘what if,’ instead of the ‘what is.’ The ‘what is’ is more important. If someone were to go back 15 years and say, ‘You should have done this,’ it’s too late. I was told to do ‘X,’ and I was trying to do ‘X’ the best way that I could.”