John Cena may not be working in a WWE ring right now or much in the future, but he’s certainly keeping his eye on the product.
The ‘pandemic era’ – for want of a better term – has certainly been a challenge to WWE.
Working without a live audience has been a first for many performers at the elite level and, production wise, WWE has had to rethink how they do things.
As a result, we’ve seen some cinematic matches and different, longer style promos that have a more personal, intimate feel.
Cena hasn’t been seen on WWE TV since losing to Bray Wyatt in a Firefly Funhouse match at WrestleMania 36 in April, but he shared his thoughts with Sports Illustrated on WWE coping during an era without any fans.
“The key is knowing your audience,” Cena started. “I worked a lot with the live audience, many times against the wishes of what a lot of people told me.
“I believe if the live audience is having a good time at a live event, then you as a viewer at home are having a good time.
“There were numerous times when, against many people’s wishes, I would involve a live audience and make sure they knew, one, I was listening, even if it wasn’t flattering to me. Two, I understood, and three, I tried to incorporate. Now with an element that does not have a live audience, as a performer, you have to focus on what’s in front of you.
“It’s almost like movie-making. The biggest difficulty for me is not playing to the people in section 312. There are no people anymore.”
Without a crowd, there is much more emphasis for people to lean into their characters and greater significance on the subtle stories superstars can tell.
Cena thinks stars need to understand that and where you can’t totally rely on creative, superstars must use their imagination and take the opportunities they get.
“If there is ever a time to commit to story, this is it,” he added. “A lot of times when there’s an audience, you really can lean on your ability to produce action. You cannot do that now.
“The viewer at home no longer gets caught up in the energy of the live crowd. It’s literally asking someone to unlearn what they’ve learned, and that’s a bold risk. And a lot of people are not comfortable taking those risks. But I think the more people embrace story, even when there is none—and that doesn’t mean, ‘Well, the creative team didn’t provide a story, that means there is no story.’ No, I’m living proof that is not the case.
“You just have to use your imagination. In this realm, imagination is king. Action will not drive the product forward. It has to be imaginative, and it has to be well-presented.”
Speaking of the talent that appear to embrace using their imagination, the 16-time world champion noted that his last foe Wyatt and Seth Rollins have stood out.
“Bray is obviously doing a great job. And Seth Rollins has done an unbelievable job of adapting to a crowdless environment.”