John Cena Reveals How ‘A Happy Accident’ Got Him A Role in Barbie

John Cena revealed that he was cast as Merman Ken in Greta Gerwig’s Barbie after an accidental encounter with the actress. 

The movie stars Margot Robbie as the famous doll who leaves her home for the first time and explores the real world. Cena and Robbie are part of a star-studded Barbie ensemble, including Ryan Gosling, Simu Liu, Ncuti Gatwa, Dua Lipa, and Will Ferrell. Helen Mirren lends her voice as the narrator of the film.

In an interview with TODAY with Hoda & Jenna (via Entertainment Weekly), Cena shared how he landed the role of Merman Ken in Barbie. 

He said that he met Robbie while working on the sets of Fast X, which happened to be near Barbie’s set. Cena said that this coincidence led to him being offered the part of Merman Ken. Here is Cena’s complete statement:

I haven’t worked with Margot before. We literally randomly ran into each other as friends. Fast X was filming across the street from Barbie. And [she asked], ‘Why don’t you do Barbie?’ I said, ‘I’ve been trying!’ And Margot makes a lot of the decisions for that, and I said, ‘Well, I’ll do whatever you need.

The “invisible man” plays Merman Ken, one of the many versions of Barbie’s male counterparts in Gerwig’s movie. The trailer has revealed Gosling’s Ken as the central Ken, along with Liu, Gatwa, Evans, and Ben-Adir as other Kens. 

However, unlike Robbie’s friendly Barbie, Gosling’s Ken fiercely competes with Liu, and their rivalry will be one of the major plot points.

Gosling accompanies Robbie to the real world with his roller skates. He also faces his own challenges, as he is unemployed and homeless at the beginning of the film. Gosling said that Ken has a hard life but tries to stay positive. Therefore, Ken’s adventure with Barbie could also help him find his purpose in life.

Cena joins a stellar cast that has made Barbie one of the most anticipated movies of 2023. The movie’s plot and characters are still a mystery, but Cena’s anecdote about his encounter with Robbie shows how the film was made with fun and spontaneity. 

Fans will have to wait and see how Cena and the rest of the cast will bring Barbie to life on the big screen.

About Barbie (2023)

Barbie is a 2023 film directed by Greta Gerwig, who co-wrote the screenplay with Noah Baumbach. It is based on the eponymous fashion doll line by Mattel, and serves as the franchise’s first live-action film adaptation after several computer-animated direct-to-video and streaming television films.

The film stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as Barbie and Ken respectively. Barbie released in the United States and United Kingdom on July 21, 2023, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures.