Hulk Hogan Is Right About the Potential of a John Cena Heel Turn

No one knows more about morphing from a supremely popular babyface into a heel than Hulk Hogan. His thoughts on John Cena embracing the dark side at some point in the future are worth considering for that reason alone.

Fans have long envisioned Cena mirroring Hogan's famous heel turn in 1996. The rebuttal that this shift in character can't be done has been around just as long. Cena's charity work and relationship with the younger portion of the audience are roadblocks to that happening.

Hogan thinks a Cena turn could work, although he doesn't sound all that sure about it.

In an interview with Troy Hughes for 105.3 The Fan in Dallas (h/t Wrestling Inc), Hogan addressed the idea of a villainous Cena. He said the following:

"

When you look at the big picture you see ad buys, sponsorships and amount of revenue generated by merchandise, and the fact that he volunteers to go overseas to see the troops. When he's home he sees troops who were messed up in the war, and make-a-wish kids. I guess you can be a bad guy and still generate that type of revenue, which I did.

"

He later added, "You and I would say that he should turn heel right now like I did, and the fans would cheer him more than ever probably."

The Hulkster sticks "probably" and "I guess" into his assessment, but unsure or not, he brings up some good points. He mentions Cena's involvement with charities and how much that affects revenue. It's not as if heels don't remove their sinister masks when they enter the community.

Stephanie McMahon is one of the company's top heels. Onscreen, she's vindictive and unjust. Outside of WWE, she formed the Connor's Cure charity fund to raise money for pediatric brain and spinal cancer research.

David Otunga, despite playing a slimy, unscrupulous attorney on TV, has hosted many a anti-bullying event for Be A STAR.

WWE could get away with breaking kayfabe to have Cena do these events if it wanted to.

There is also the issue of merchandise. The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported in May (h/t Sports World News) that Cena was far and away the leader in merchandise sales at arenas. He trailed only the Ultimate Warrior in Internet merch sales.

This is nothing new. Cena's gear has long been a ubiquitous sight at WWE shows.

In the late '90s, though, the same was true for NWO attire.

Comparing LeBron James joining the Miami Heat to the WCW faction, Kyle Schmitt wrote on SI.com, "The Heat and the NWO became simultaneously the most popular and hated teams in their sports, and they sent ratings and merchandise sales skyrocketing for their organizations." The black-and-white NWO T-shirts are still popular with collectors today.

Could WWE do something similar with Cena? It would take a great angle like Hogan joining forces with The Outsiders, but yes.

Credit: WWE.com

We live in an era where kayfabe is all but non-existent. Fans cheer heels like Cesaro and Bad News Barrett in spite of their dastardly ways because they like their work. Crowds chant Damien Mizdow's name each time he accompanies The Miz.

That leads us to the other big takeaway from Hogan's comments, that Cena would get cheered even more as a heel.

Wipe away that straight-laced veneer from Cena and his coolness factor goes up. Ask a kid in a Darth Vader costume on Halloween if there isn't something appealing about the bad guy.

The NWO's success was built around its swagger. Those guys were heels you wanted to be like—WCW's Goodfellas.

Young fans of Cena will eventually grow up. The kid who was rooting for Cena in 2010 at eight years old will be 14 in 2016. His tastes will change, much like how the kids who grew up on Hulkamania were teenagers when the NWO angle came around.

Hogan is right to be hesitant, though.

Turning Cena heel successfully can be done, but it's a major risk. What if this new version of Cena doesn't catch on like Hollywood Hogan did? What if his new, darker T-shirts don't sell like his current ones do?

Cena is a star for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, reaching the 400-wish mark this year. Maybe the kids who request him still do so when he's a bad guy. Maybe his demand even increases with him becoming more edgy.

WWE doesn't know what lies on the other side of the bridge, and that—more than anything—is what will hold them back from crossing it.   

A Cena heel turn will remain one of the most talked-about subjects in wrestling as his babyface run stretches on. For WWE, it serves as a powerful-but-unsure weapon to grab the audience's attention. The company may keep it in its holster, but it will be ready to be drawn when needed.