Peacemaker taught John Cena how to “throw it all away” in action movies.

John Cena is known for his work ethic as an actor, which was evident when he met in London for a quick interview for Matthew Vaughn’s new film For Argy. Cena, his wrestler’s body filling out a sleek three-piece suit, sat up straight, made firm eye contact, displayed his considerable charisma and gave detailed, thoughtful answers – going out of his way to promote a movie in which he was only plays a small role.

Part of that work ethic is the humility to let go of your preconceptions about a role and let your director take the lead. Cena plays Wyatt, a sidekick of Henry Cavill’s super spy Aubrey Argylle; They are both characters of a fiction within a fiction, appearing only in certain “fantasy” sequences in the film. Cena said he took a similar approach when working with Vaughn on the film when he recorded with DC Studios boss James Gunn The Suicide Squad And Peacemakerafter Gunn practically undid all of his careful prep work for the Peacemaker character with a single instruction: “Throw all that away and just be a stupid Captain America.”

When asked which badass action heroes from the film canon inspire him when approaching a project like this For ArgyCena said, “I could give you a list, but I don’t think it applies to this For Argy. For Argy is a strange and interesting world. And again I did the same thing as I approached the DC Universe. I don’t want to fill myself with any preconceptions because I rely on the thoughts of James Gunn and in this case the thoughts of Matthew Vaughn. And when I come in and say, “These are the badass guys I want to emulate, this is what I want to do,” and he goes, “Uhhhh…””

“This happened to me with James,” Cena said. “Ok, no problem. I’ve got it! Learning from that experience, I allowed Matthew to curate what he wants. I was open to listening to his opinion and then playing within his goalposts.”

Photo: Peter Mountain/Universal Pictures/Apple Original Films

Cena said the size of his role in For Argy he didn’t care. He desperately wanted to work with Vaughn and felt it would be disingenuous to put limits on that work for selfish reasons.

“[It was] a chance to be on track, as I like to say. Just get me on track,” he said. “It doesn’t matter that it’s a huge piece. This is just my perspective, but I hate people’s idea of, “This is beneath me.” Who the hell am I to say I’m above anything or anyone?

“I just like the chance to tell stories. If I really love it, I don’t want to tell a story on my terms; I just want to get on the track. So this was a chance to work with someone I had said I wanted to work with. And I’d be a damn hypocrite if I said, “I’d like to work with you, but only on my terms.” You know, an opportunity comes along? Take it.”

Cena may be hoping for a bigger role in the future For Argy is turning into a franchise for which Vaughn has confusing plans. Still, as his acting star rises, his ego-free approach to his work stands out.

For Argy is now in the cinema.