What did John Cena say? Actor doubles down on defense of Vince McMahon following backlash

John Cena is responding to fan backlash over his NY Times profile, where he expressed his love for Vince McMahon, in a US Weekly article published recently.

In an April 18 New York Times profile, John Cena said, "I love Vince," after former WWE chairman Vince McMahon faced multiple accusations of s*xual misconduct and s*x trafficking.

In the profile, John said:

"I don't care who hears it - I love Vince. I'm not downplaying anything that needs to be decided or allegations of any kind, but when I love somebody, I love them wholeheartedly. I know people are going to be angry about that, but they can't put their value on my relationship with somebody I love."

In January 2024, former WWE employee Janel Grant filed a lawsuit against WWE, McMahon, and John Laurinaitis in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut, accusing McMahon of s*xually assaulting and trafficking her. The case is still ongoing and has gained popularity, with public backlash over the former WWE chairman.

In July 2022, The Wall Street Journal reported that the former WWE chairman paid $12 million to hide allegations of "s*xual misconduct of infidelity" for 16 years.

What did John Cena say about fan backlash over his "love" for Vince McMahon

John Cena's NY Times profile received backlash for his support for Vince McMahon, despite s*xual assault allegations.

During an exclusive interview with US Weekly published on May 13, John said that he's "entitled to have an emotional connection" with Vince:

"Everybody's entitled to their opinion. Just like I'm entitled to have an emotional connection to somebody. I don't hold anybody or how they feel or what they view as permissible or things that'll make them angry, happy, excited, sad. That's their right as a human being."

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He also added that he's "not surprised" about the fan reaction. This isn't the first time Cena has reacted to Vince's ongoing lawsuit. At the time when Janel Grant initially filed the lawsuit on January 25, Cena, during an appearance on The Howard Stern Show, mentioned that the lawsuit is not "complicated" to talk about, but is complicated to "listen to." He also said that he doesn't put "a lot of time and equity" into it.

He also mentioned that he's going to "love the person", "be their friend" since he has a "great relationship" with Vince. He also opened up about his friendship style and mentioned that he supports his friends and is also there to offer help when needed.

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