Wrestling legend Hulk Hogan has offered candid thoughts on John Cena’s recent heel turn while discussing his new venture with longtime collaborator Eric Bischoff. In a wide-ranging interview with Forbes published on April 30, 2025, Hogan didn’t hold back when comparing Cena’s character switch to his own historic 1996 heel turn that launched the nWo.
When asked to compare John Cena’s heel turn to his own historic turn, Hogan initially deflected, saying: “I’m going to let Eric comment on that, because if I talk first, I could say something that’s [not appropriate].”
This hesitation suggested Hogan had strong opinions about the execution of Cena’s character change, which he later elaborated on after Bischoff shared his thoughts.
Respect for Cena as a Performer
Despite his criticisms, Hogan expressed genuine respect for Cena, stating:
“Well, first off, John Cena was my favorite wrestler. Let me start there. Because I grinded for years, brother, and there was no Rock, no Stone Cold. There was only me for 20-plus years. I saw all the Make-A-Wish kids… So John stepped up and really ran with the ball and he did a really great job.”
The acknowledgment of Cena’s charitable work and his role in carrying WWE during his era demonstrated Hogan’s appreciation for Cena’s contributions to professional wrestling.
Criticism of Cena’s Heel Turn Execution
However, Hogan criticized how Cena’s heel turn was executed compared to the nWo storyline:
“We set it up, we set up, we set up, then we delivered. And then not only did we deliver, we rolled out with me, Hall and Nash. And that story kept snowballing and snowballing, and we kept getting more evil and evil.”
Continuing his critique, Hogan added:
“And so for me, watching that story with John Cena, when The Rock did the throat thing, cut his throat, and John Cena turned heel, I expected more of the same. And then John Cena came out and there was no Rock, and I just got disconnected at that point, ’cause I was expecting the characters to keep rolling out like we did.”
Comparing the Impact of Both Turns
Hogan emphasized the greater impact of his nWo turn:
“Like when the nWo took over, man, I even hate to say the word, we just cleaned house and beat everybody’s ass, and we just killed it. All the babyfaces were crying and complaining, and it got really ugly. We were so powerful with that trio.”
The wrestling icon clearly believes the follow-through and long-term storytelling behind his own heel turn created a more significant impact than what he’s seen from Cena’s character change so far.
Real American Freestyle Wrestling
The interview was conducted as part of Hogan and Bischoff’s promotion of their new venture called “Real American Freestyle,” an unscripted freestyle wrestling league that aims to combine legitimate wrestling competition with the storytelling elements that made professional wrestling successful.
