John Cena casting for ‘Transformers’ spin-off will generate new ‘buzz’

John Cena has been the subject of criticism, mostly tied up to his part-time setup due to his commitments outside the WWE ring. While he is currently active and likely to stay until SummerSlam 2017, it seems he is set to take some time off to fulfill a movie commitment.

The word is out that the former WWE champion has landed a lead role in the “Transformers” spin-off “bumblebee” film.

Details remain limited at this point though plans for a spin-off for the yellow-themed Autobot has been abuzz for quite some time now.

The plot so far

Like most movies that dig deeper into the main characters, the story of Bumblebee is likely to focus on how he came to be. The story will reportedly be set in 1987 with BumbleBee ending up at a junkyard at a small California beach town.

It looks like aside from that, the same storyline seen in the first Transformers movie will be used. For those who forgot that Bumblebee eventually landed with Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf). A Volkswagen Beetle was the original form before the Autobot came to life and transitioned to a more modern Chevrolet Camaro.

This time around, it will be reportedly a female character named Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld) crossing paths with Bumblebee. Battle-scarred and broken, she will eventually revive the Autobot, discovering that she has a special kind of yellow VW bug in her hands.

So what will Cena do?

As far as John Cena is concerned, there is no word on what role the actor-wrestler will hold. He could play father to Charlie – perhaps the simplest way to tie him up to the mix. A lot of that depends on Christina Hondson who is tasked to pen the story.

If not, Cena could be cast as someone who has witnessed the Transformers wars, witnessing how Bumblebee ended up in a junkyard. Bumblebee could be hiding along with the rest of the Autobots as they try to regroup.

Either way, Cena is exiting the WWE scene once again with fans likely feasting on his new itinerary. The Cenation leader is aware that his days are numbered in the ring, perhaps one of the reasons why he has taken on TV or film roles. Regardless, his commitments are similar to other former WWE stars like Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson or even Hulk Hogan.

“Bumblebee” is not due until December 2018 meaning more updates are expected in the coming months. “Transformers: The Last Knight” is in theatres though this installment hasn’t really done well at the box office. The fifth offering ranks as the lowest compared to its predecessors, hopefully, numbers that will not add pressure to the spin-off.

Aside from Steinfeld and Cena, other stars appearing in the spin-off include Pamela Adlon, Stephen Schneider, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Jason Drucker, Kenneth Choi, Ricardo Hoyos, Abby Quinn, Rachel Crow and Grace Dzienny.