John Cena reveals chance meeting with Barbie star Margot Robbie led to him being cast in comedy film, ‘It was a happy accident’
John Cena revealed that the cast in the highly anticipated Barbie movie was a “happy accident” when he appeared on Tuesday’s episode of Today.
The WWE star, 46 – who will star as handsome merman Ken – was there to promote Fast X, but couldn’t resist serving up the Margot Robbie-led comedy.
The actor – who will also appear alongside Awkwafina in Grand Death Lottery – explained that his casting in Barbie was the result of “a chance encounter with Margot.”
He said it happened while he was working on the set of Fast X, which happened to be across the street from Barbie’s production.
Cena explained that Margot was the one who made “a lot of the decisions” when it came to who would star in the Greta Gerwig-directed feature film.
John Cena revealed the cast in the highly anticipated Barbie movie was a ‘happy accident’ when he appeared on Tuesday’s episode of Today
The actor – who will also appear alongside Awkwafina in Grand Death Lottery – explained that his casting in Barbie was the result of “a chance encounter with Margot”
“So, with a lot of opportunities, it was an opportunity to maybe do that [say]”Hey, would you like me if there’s anything I could do?” he said.
He told Barbie’s creative team that he would “do pretty much anything you guys need because I’m really enjoying the movie.”
Cena’s passion for the project eventually led to him being asked if he wanted to “become a merman” – which he gladly accepted.
He then joked that his mermaid story is “above average size.”
The professional wrestler went on to say that fans should expect the unexpected from the film, which also stars Ryan Gosling and Simu Liu.
“I think it will surprise a lot of people. [It’s] a really interesting take on everything… and it’s wildly surreal,” Cena teased.
Barbie was developed in the 2010s, and director and writer Gerwig signed on for the project in 2019.
Chance encounter: He said it happened while he was working on the set of Fast X, which happened to be right across the street from Barbie’s production
Right place, right time: The artist went on to say that his casting happened because of “a chance meeting with Margot Robbie” while working on the set of Fast X, which happened to be across the street from Barbie’s production area
Responsible girl: Cena explained that Margot was the one who made “a lot of the decisions” when it came to who would star in the Greta Gerwig-directed feature film
Surprise: The professional wrestler then shared that fans should expect the unexpected from the movie, which also stars Ryan Gosling as Barbie’s love interest Ken
The film also stars artists such as Will Ferrell, Michael Cera and Helen Mirren, among many others.
Physical production on the project began in England last year and filming took place in Los Angeles last April.
The first teaser trailer for the feature was released last December, and a second debuted last month.
Barbie is currently scheduled to be released to the public on July 21.