Daily Debate: Is John Cena Teasing Being Cast in the Zelda Movie?

Everyone’s favorite professional wrestler and actor, John Cena, caused rumors to bound throughout the Zelda fandom by posting a no-context photo of 8-bit Link from the first game on Instagram earlier this week — unintentionally or otherwise. There wasn’t even an accompanying description. Sifting through the comments, the cryptic image caused many to question, “But, what does it mean?” No matter what it means, it’s certainly amusing.

The obvious assumption is that John Cena is being cast in the upcoming Zelda movie. Perhaps some hush-hush contracts are preventing him from saying more? 

Unfortunately, with no other evidence, it is impossible to say whether this post is an Easter egg, or if it is just one person sharing his love of classic video games. Cena did share an image from Punch Out! recently, so maybe he is just taking a trip down memory lane to the games of yesteryear. Plus, he did show some love for Breath of the Wild upon its release — albeit in a paid advertisement in Sports Illustrated.

Currently, assuming this to be a casting announcement appears to be a baseless conclusion, but it also wouldn’t be the first time celebrities have covertly advertised secret projects in their social posts. With this track record, you could argue his participation in the Zelda movie is just as likely as it is unlikely. Still, there isn’t much to go on.

This interesting Instagram post isn’t just about whether or not you now want John Cena to play Ganondorf, Groose, Darunia, or even Tingle (shoutout to the rest of the ZD staff for these wonderful suggestions). Instances like this that go viral on social media reveal a lot about modern media hype, especially within strong fandoms like Zelda. We all want the series’ first movie to be amazing, so many of us care about strategic casting choices. We’ve seen the star-studded A-listers they got for the likes of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, so it isn’t the most farfetched rumor that has ever been made.

So, would John Cena be a strong choice, and if not, who else should be in the movie? In this day and age, is one simple image like this enough to convince you of a secret announcement, or do you think it’s a waste of time imagining headcanons? Let us know in the comments which side you land!

Nicole Scott

Nicole Scott is writer for Zelda Dungeon from suburban Appalachia. She loves drinking espresso, seeing live music, building LEGO sets, being a completionist, and snuggling her two probably-alien cats, Tizo and Alarielle.