Actor/wrestler John Cena has been married twice, and he’s currently married to an engineer named Shay.
However, one thing Cena has never done is have kids. He’s been very open about the reason. He explained his decision on an episode of the Shay, Shay podcast in 2024.
John Cena Said Flatly That He Does Not Want Kids Because of the ‘Investment That It Takes’
Cena did not mince words on the podcast when the topic of kids came up.
“I don’t want them,” Cena told host Shannon Sharp of having children. “I have a certain curiosity about life, and I also know the investment that it takes.”
He elaborated that he’s worried that his personality type means he’s not ready to have children.
“And my biggest fear is, as someone who’s driven – many times stubborn, and selfish – I try to approach the world with kindness and curiosity, but I don’t think I’m personally ready, nor will I ever be, to invest the time it needs to be a great parent because I want to live life for all it is,” Cena told Sharp.
“And I still have a lot to do. And I still want to do a lot. I have a wonderful partner I do it with. We’ve had open conversations about this. We share the same values.”
He added that he feels people judge people who don’t choose to have kids and put them into a “category.”
“I’d like to believe that I operate under the construct that everyone’s okay living their life,” he said on the podcast. “My opinions only hit that gray area during emotionally difficult times. And I’m very happy with where I stand. I have a lot of joy and fulfillment in my life. And that’s pretty much where I stand on it.”
John Cena & His Ex-Fiancee Nikki Bella Considered Having Kids
In between his two marriages, Cena dated wrestling star Nikki Garcia, otherwise known as Nikki Bella, but the engagement ended.
At one point, he was willing to have kids with her, she said in an interview.
According to US Weekly, she told Maria Menounos, “Overall, we did have such an incredible relationship, it was just two people that wanted two different lives. We were trying so hard to make it one,” she said at the time. “Even in the end when he was willing to give me kids, I could just tell, it’s not what we wanted.”
She later had a child with her Dancing With the Stars partner Artem Chigvintsev, according to US Weekly.
