You can tell that it continues to rankle with Dave Bautista that he keeps finding himself compared to Hollywood’s other premiere ex-WWE grapplers, even though the Guardians of the Galaxy star has continually gone out of his way to distance himself from both Dwayne Johnson and John Cena.
Ironically, the latter two have both joined the Fast & Furious franchise at various points, something that Bautista turned down during a meeting with Universal. Not only that, but Cena was cast as Peacemaker in The Suicide Squad after James Gunn initially wrote the part with Bautista in mind before he knocked it back to work with Zack Snyder, meaning that Cena and Johnson are also part of the DCEU, while their former in-ring rival remains part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
If that wasn’t enough, Army of the Dead‘s leading man has both blasted The Fast Saga and The Rock’s acting abilities on more than one occasion, as well as laughing off the notion of co-starring with Cena in a buddy film. It’s no surprise, then, that the 52 year-old was quick to shoot down a fan who daydreamed about the trio finally sharing the screen together.
Nah I’m good!! https://t.co/A2lpdnkusq
— Dave Bautista (@DaveBautista) June 24, 2021
Cena has voiced his enthusiasm to rekindle his rivalry with Johnson from the squared circle on the silver screen in a future Fast & Furious blockbuster, but Dave Bautista evidently wants absolutely no part of it. Having worked so hard to establish himself in the first place and gained a reputation as arguably a much more capable dramatic performer than the other two, you can understand why he’s so keen to avoid being lumped into the same broad category as his contemporaries.