John Cena seemingly picked up on the tension between Dwayne Johnson and Vin Diesel after he joined the Fast & Furious franchise.
“There’s certainly rumors about that, I can’t deny that,” Cena, 46, said of Johnson and Diesel’s dynamic during the Monday, April 8, episode of Dax Shepard’s “Armchair Expert” podcast. “You have two very alpha, driven people. You get two, there can only be one.”
Cena was brought into the Fast family for 2021’s F9 as Jakob Toretto following Johnson’s unexpected departure from the movies amid rumors of a feud between him and Diesel, 56. Cena explained that he read the room after he arrived on set and had to “adapt” to what was “going on” behind the scenes.
“I’m being invited into someone’s home, into someone’s family, and regardless of how they look physically in comparison into another human being,” he recalled. “This is one IP that is nine installments, and it’s an action movie. That’s rarefied air. … At the very least, there has to be respect for that.”
The actor noted that he knew was a “guest” coming into a blockbuster franchise and wanted to help the films continue to succeed while not adding any drama.
“I’m not trying to get in the sandbox, that’s not my thing,” he said. “I’m grateful for what you’ve given me. I just want to be the best fire truck I can.”
Diesel has portrayed Dominic Toretto since the first Fast & Furious film premiered in 2001. Johnson, 51, joined the cast nearly a decade later in Fast Five, which premiered in 2011. Diesel and Johnson then worked together on Fast & Furious 6, Furious 7 and The Fate of the Furious, and their relationship seemed friendly at first.
Rumors of a feud began swirling in August 2016 after Johnson shared a cryptic Instagram post hinting at conflict with an unnamed costar on the set of The Fate of the Furious, which hit theaters in 2017.
“Some conduct themselves as stand up men and true professionals, while others don’t,” Johnson wrote in a since-deleted post. “The ones that don’t are too chicken s–t to do anything about it anyway. Candy asses. When you watch this movie next April and it seems like I’m not acting in some of these scenes and my blood is legit boiling — you’re right.”
Johnson added fuel to the fire in a follow-up message. “Family is gonna have differences of opinion and fundamental core beliefs,” he wrote. “To me, conflict can be a good thing, when it’s followed by great resolution. I was raised on healthy conflict and welcome it. And like any family, we get better from it.”
While many fans speculated that the post was directed toward Diesel, the actors continued to work together. However, viewers quickly noticed that the duo had fewer scenes together in The Fate of the Furious. In 2021, Johnson confirmed he would not be returning to the franchise.
Later that year, Johnson admitted that he regretted posting his cryptic message but wouldn’t take back his comments.
“I shouldn’t have shared that. Because at the end of the day, that goes against my DNA. I don’t share things like that,” he told Vanity Fair in October 2021. “And I take care of that kind of bulls–t away from the public. They don’t need to know that. That’s why I say it wasn’t my best day.”
Following Johnson’s departure, Diesel made a public plea to get the former wrestler back in the Fast & Furious family, and the gesture rubbed Johnson the wrong way.
“This past June, when Vin and I actually connected not over social media, I told him directly — and privately — that I would not be returning to the franchise,” Johnson said to CNN in December 2021. “I was firm yet cordial with my words and said that I would always be supportive of the cast and always root for the franchise to be successful, but that there was no chance I would return. I privately spoke with my partners at Universal as well, all of whom were very supportive as they understand the problem.”
Despite not agreeing with how Diesel asked him to reprise his role, Johnson reluctantly agreed two years later. He surprised fans in May 2023 when a post-credits cameo in Fast X teased that his character would return for the final installments.
“The peace treaty … I kind of [brokered it]. We all did. Ultimately, the movie did,” director Louis Leterrier told The Hollywood Reporter after the movie’s release. “We sort of looked at each other from across the room and winked a few months back, saying, ‘We should work together.’ And then I had this idea and I presented it to the producers and the studio. And then we reached out to Dwayne and his team, and said, ‘Just come and watch the movie. You have to love the movie first.’ So, he came to see the movie and really loved it, and then we started talking. It was very smooth.”
