Peacemaker star John Cena reveals he unsuccessfully auditioned for these Marvel, DC superhero roles

John Cena is finally getting to play a superhero in his new web series Peacemaker. But the wrestler-turned-actor reveals this opportunity came his way after several rejections, in both Marvel films and the DC Extended Universe.

In a recent interaction, John revealed that he has been rejected for several superhero roles before he eventually landed Peacemaker, including Shazam in DCEU and Cable in the Marvel film Deadpool.

Speaking to Josh Horowitz on The Happy Sad Confused podcast, John said, “I can’t tell you how many superhero roles I’ve been rejected for. Shazam is certainly one. I think like a child, so Shazam was super interesting to me…And when I read the script, a lot of times, like… this is the thing, I don’t chase ‘I want to do this,’ I always have to read it.” Shazam was eventually played by Zachary Levi.

Later on, in the same interaction, he added that he was also rejected for a few Marvel roles. “There was a brief try at the Deadpool universe, rejection. There were a few in the Marvel universe, rejected. But you know, I keep trying,” he said, before revealing that one of the roles he was rejected for was Cable, eventually played by Josh Brolin.

John eventually did get to play a costumed superhero but in the DC Universe when he appeared as Peacemaker in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad, which released last year. He is reprising his role in the spin-off series Peacemaker, which premiered on HBO Max last week.

However, since HBO Max is not currently in India, the show isn’t available in the country, much to the dismay of Indian fans.

Recently, the series showrunner James Gunn responded to a fan on Twitter, promising that he was trying to get the show to India. “I’m working on India too, I promise. Along with the UK, it’s the place I get asked about the most,” he tweeted along with a Peacemaker hashtag when a fan asked him when the show would stream in India.