John Cena is addressing claims he’s allegedly the “oddball” out for remaining committed to living a child-free life.
“Just because someone thinks I would be good at something, is that reason enough to do it?” Cena, 49, said of potential fatherhood on a recent episode of Trevor Noah’s “What Now?” podcast. “It is not a commitment where if four months in I’m like, ‘You know, this wasn’t my thing.’”
Cena has long stated that he doesn’t plan to have kids, which he and his wife, Shay Shariatzadeh, even discussed on their first date. (Cena and Shariatzadeh, 36, have been married since 2020.)
“Those who envision like, ‘Man, I wish I had a father figure like [me],’ the time I’ve had to live life is how I’ve developed the wisdom [and] how I’ve developed the nuance because I’m here, I’m present,” he told podcast host Noah, 42. “When I’m here with you guys, my wife is curious and independent and we love each other and we respect our space.”
Cena continued, “She’s doing something in New York, and I have no fear in what she’s doing and I have full trust in what she’s doing, which allows me to be here with you guys fully to maybe learn something to develop maybe another layer of the onion. It’s the time without those commitments that have led me to be who I am.”
The retired wrestling star further mused that his identity wouldn’t be the same had he been tethered to the “commitments” of raising children.
“The thing that makes this question so difficult is I’m on the wrong side of the math. Everybody has kids. Well, that’s not necessarily true, but a majority of the folks do,” Cena mused. “They aspire to, so, because I don’t want to, ‘I’m an oddball.’ … I just want to choose to be over here in my lane in life, and I understand that that is not the majority. Living in that small bracket, you have to answer a lot of questions, and that’s OK.”
Even having conversations questioning his decision, Cena has not wavered on his position.
“I’ll state my claim on the fact that I’ve been able to absorb all of these moments without my attention being split or fractured, [which] has led me to be the man I am today,” he noted. “I look at the guy in the mirror and he ain’t perfect. [There are] tons of flaws, but I love that dude. I’m super at peace, and I still want to do more and experience more.”
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