SUMMARY
- John Cena is one of the most successful stars in WWE history, as he's is 16-time World Champion.
- Just like him, Dave Bautista is also a WWE legend, as he's one the most dominant names in the history of professional wrestling.
Dwayne Johnson is often said to be the biggest wrestler-turned-actor in history, but he isn’t the only WWE star to enter Hollywood. Alongside The Rock, John Cena and Dave Bautista have also been working as actors in the entertainment world for a long time now.
In fact, both these legends of the Triple H-led promotion have made a significant impact on the industry through their respective careers. Due to the kind of work they’ve done in the acting world, both of them have gotten even more popular among the audience. Amid the popularity they enjoy among the WWE Universe, there’s always a discussion about who is better.
Even though The Cenation Leader has probably been more successful as a wrestler, as he is a 16-time World Champion. But in terms of their acting careers, most of the fans remain uncertain about who has had a better career. So, let’s dive into the facts to discuss who among Cena and Bautista has had a better acting career.
John Cena’s Hollywood career
The 46-year-old may have been getting most of the recognition as an actor in recent years, but he made his acting debut way back in 2006. His first ever movie appearance was in WWE Studios’ The Marine, which was distributed theatrically by 20th Century Fox America.
In fact, his next movie, 12 Rounds, was also under the same production house, and it was released on March 27, 2009. Following this, the 6-foot-1 co-starred in his third film, titled Legendary, which was released in September 2010. As these were the years, John was still a full-time wrestler, he was doing double duty.
But after a few years, he decided to give more attention to his acting career. Due to this, in 2015, he was in Trainwreck and Sisters and in Daddy’s Home movie. Later, the WWE legend starred in the war drama The Wall and also worked as the voice artist for the animated films Surf’s Up 2: WaveMania and Ferdinand.
The fan-favorite star also appeared in Daddy’s Home 2. In 2018, Cena starred in the comedy Blockers, and his Bumblebee role made him the talk of the town. After this role, John worked in the role of Jake Carson in the 2019 film Playing with Fire. In arguably the biggest break in his career as an actor, the 16-time World Champion was cast in Justin Lin’s F9, playing the role of Vin Diesel’s brother.
Even though Cena’s role in the Fast & Furious series wasn’t that big, his performance in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad turned out to arguably be his best work in Hollywood. The Leader of the Cenation’s role as Peacemaker added a lot to his star power.
Moreover, his role as Jakob Toretto in Fast X, which premiered in theatres on May 19, 2023, also garnered a lot of praise for his acting skills. In addition to this, the 46-year-old also played an important part in Barbie, which was released in July 2023. Even though he played a side role in this movie, it added a new layer to his career.
Dave Bautista’s journey as an actor
Similar to Cena, Dave Bautista also started his acting career in 2006 and made several appearances over the next few years. In 2010, Dave worked alongside Marrese Crump and Ja Rule on the action film Wrong Side of Town. Bautista later appeared as the villainous Brass Body in The Man with the Iron Fists, which was released in 2012.
Following this, The Animal played a role in the 2013 film Riddick, and just a year after this, he was able to bag his iconic role of Drax the Destroyer. His performance as Drax in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which he started playing in 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy, is the character he is most widely known for.
He played the role of Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which was released in May 2017, Avengers: Infinity War, which was released in April 2018, and Avengers: Endgame, which was released in April 2019. After continuing to work in this role for nearly a decade, he left the franchise after Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in 2023.
While continuing with the portrayal of this role, Bautista also played roles outside the MCU. He played Mr. Hinx in James Bond’s 2015 movie Spectre and appeared in Blade Runner 2049, which was released in 2017. Following this, he was cast in the popular 2020 release My Spy and later appeared in Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead, which was released in 2021.
The 55-year-old wrestling legend then did the portrayal of Glossu Rabban Harkonnen in Denis Villeneuve’s Dune (2021). In addition to this, Bautista appeared in the 2022 movie Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery and also in the 2023 film Knock at the Cabin.
The 6-foot-6 actor was seen portraying Glossu Rabban Harkonnen in Dune: Part Two, which was released in 2024. Even though Dave Bautista has already achieved immense success in his acting career, he’s not backing down and is set to be part of numerous interesting projects in the near future.
Has Dave Bautista been more successful than John Cena?
Both John and Dave have enjoyed a lot of success in Hollywood, but as of now, Bautista has been more successful as an actor. The Animal has already been associated with an iconic role, which has been his portrayal of Drax, and it’s a major reason it can be said that he’s had a better acting career than Cena.
As The Cenation Leader and Bautista have been in the industry for almost the same time, fans might wonder the reason behind this. But it’s important to remember that Dave has been working in the entertainment industry for a long time. On the other hand, the 16-time WWE Champion turned his full attention to Hollywood a while after the MCU star.
This is a major reason why the 6-foot-1 superstar is probably not as successful as Dave Bautista in terms of his acting career. However, if we look at the way John Cena’s acting career has been in the last few years, it seems like he’s destined to give tough competition to The Animal very soon. In addition to this, it also remains to be seen if both of them would ever work together on a project or not.