We’re less than a month away from the premiere of The Suicide Squad, in which characters like John Cena’s Peacemaker may or may not die. Regardless, come January we can see even more of the vigilante antihero in his own HBO miniseries. Which may or may not be a prequel, depending on the outcome of the film. And in a new interview with Empire, Cena has given an indication that this will finally give fans the “heel turn” he never gave in the wrestling ring (via SuperHeroHype).
“This guy is a loud, obnoxious, bro-ey douchebag,” says the actor. “That sucks. But why? At what point did he become such a douchebag and what does that mean? There’s a lot to dive into there.” Director James Gunn gets even more to the point, describing the character as “a piece of s—.”
RELATED: The Suicide Squad Wants to Add Depth to DC’s Dumbest Character
So why make a show about him? Gunn allows that “you see in John’s performance how he does not feel good about it – something I thought was the seed of an entire eight-episode show.”
Empire also debuts a new image of Cena in character, looking more dirtied up than The Suicide Squad trailer has shown so far. And it confirms that, despite the movie being something of a reboot, this series does take place in existing DC movie continuity. “He lives in the world of Superman, Batman, and Aquaman, and that is not an easy thing for him to contend with,” says Gunn.
If the success of Fast 9 at the box office is any indication, audiences embrace Cena as a franchise antihero. We’ll see more come January.
Can you see Cena as such a dubious character? Let us know in the comments!
Recommended Reading: Suicide Squad Vol. 8: The Final Mission
