John Cena has shared his insight into the nearly decade-long feud between “Fast & Furious” co-stars Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson.
During an appearance on Dax Shepard’s “Armchair Expert” podcast, the WWE superstar turned Hollywood actor, 46, spoke about the rumors concerning Johnson and Diesel’s on-set tension.
“There’s certainly rumors about that. I can’t deny that,” Cena shared. “You have two very alpha, driven people. You get two, there can only be one.”
Cena was one of the latest additions to the “Fast” universe, joining the cast for “F9: The Fast Saga” in 2021 as Jakob Toretto — the estranged brother of Dom Toretto (Diesel).
Fortunately for Cena, he explained his days of dealing with egos in the WWE prepared him to handle any onset drama.
“Man, you gotta remember I got dropped into a locker room where [we have] generational vets,” the five-time WWE champ said.
“‘What’d your dad do?’ ‘Wrestle.’ ‘What’d your granddad do?’ ‘Wrestle.’ I’ve been in that environment; know the room and just kind of adapt to what’s going on.”
Cena alluded to the actor’s professionalism and respect for the “Fast” franchise.
“I’m being invited into someone’s home, into someone’s family. And regardless of how they look physically in comparison to another human being, this is one IP that has had nine installments and it’s an action movie — that’s rarefied air,” Cena explained. “At the very least, there has to be respect for that.”
Not wanting to ruffle any feathers by discussing the feud further, Cena told Shepard he was just grateful to be a part of such a beloved franchise.
“I’m not trying to get the sandbox. That’s not my thing,” he said. “I’m grateful for what you’ve given me, I just want to be the best firetruck I can.”
Rumors of the feud between the two action stars began circulating when Johnson, 51, joined the movie franchise in “Fast Five” as Luke Hobbs in 2011, the adversary to Diesel’s character.
Their distaste for each other picked up legs in 2016 after a now-deleted Instagram post by Johnson called out his “male costars” on the “Fast” franchise.
It was reported that Diesel, 56, and Johnson did not see eye to eye with each other behind the scenes.
After it was speculated that Johnson was referring to Diesel, he told Men’s Health in 2021 that their hostility only stemmed from his desire to maximize their on-screen character dynamic.
“It was a tough character to embody, the Hobbs character,” Diesel told the outlet.
“My approach at the time was a lot of tough love to assist in getting that performance where it needed to be. As a producer to say, ‘Okay, we’re going to take Dwayne Johnson, who’s associated with wrestling, and we’re going to force this cinematic world, audience members, to regard his character as someone that they don’t know.’”
The rumors only worsened after Johnson announced in 2021 that he would be leaving the blockbuster smash franchise.
Despite saying he was done with the “Fast” universe, Johnson delighted fans when he appeared as Luke Hobbs in “Fast X” during the mid-credits scene and the two seemingly put their beef to rest.
“Last summer Vin and I put all the past behind us,” Johnson posted on X after “Fast X” hit theaters.
“We’ll lead with brotherhood and resolve — and always take care of the franchise, characters & FANS that we love.”
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