John Cena Will Return from WWE Absence as a Bigger Star Than Ever

As John Cena's absences become more frequent, he has officially entered the territory of a part-timer. After a memorable WrestleMania for the 16-time world champion, one where he proposed to his longtime girlfriend Nikki Bella, Cena is currently on hiatus to shoot multiple A-list films while growing his brand as a fully faceted entertainer a la The Rock. 

Cena's success has put him in rarefied air with the likes of Brock Lesnar, The Rock and Goldberg where each occasional appearance means more than that of his peers because fans now don't have a chance to get sick of him. 

Even with the brand split, WWE Superstars are overexposed through excessive content, and many do not seem special. Each week, WWE airs three hours of Raw and two hours of SmackDown Live in addition to an occasional aftershow on Raw, a weekly aftershow on SmackDown Live and monthly pay-per-view specials for each brand. 

Though being spoiled with wrestling content can be a good thing for the more diehard fans, this type of ubiquitousness is damaging to the novelty of a WWE Superstar. Despite Cena's designed breaks representing a huge loss for WWE, they are also a blessing in disguise. 

Cena's hiatus is hardly a vacation as he works to deepen his Hollywood footprint. He is set to star in the 20th Century Fox animated film Ferdinand, which is due for a December 15 release date, in addition to comedies The Pact and Daddy's Home 2. Cena will also star in the war drama The Wall, produced by Amazon Studios, later this summer. 

And while most of these movies will not be released before Cena's next stint with WWE, Cena figures to keep himself busy through shooting and promoting said movies, frequent appearances on the Bella Twins YouTube channel, the upcoming season of Total Bellas and his forthcoming wedding with Nikki Bella, which is likely to be televised across digital and traditional media.

Cena's previous stint saw him help SmackDown become more a more successful live touring brand than Raw. Per Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t Wrestling Inc), SmackDown Live's average domestic attendance beat Raw in January with 3,695 attendees to Raw's 3,169 while edging out Raw's television taping audience in February by a count of 8,625 to 8,600. The Cena effect is real and will figure to be stronger as his long-term future with WWE remains uncertain.  

Cena will be a busy man in 2017, and each return will carry questions of whether it will be Cena's last for a while. As Cena's filmography fills up, it will become increasingly difficult for him to maintain even a part-time wrestling schedule.

It's safe to say that Cena is a legit movie star, the likes of Mark Wahlberg or even Cena's pro wrestling counterparts The Rock and Batista. Batista has not been seen in WWE since 2014, and after missing his first WrestleMania in six years, The Rock figures to be done as even an occasional performer in WWE.

In terms of blockbuster movie stars born and bred in WWE, Cena is all WWE has and will continue to remain loyal to the promotion for as long as possible. 

Alfred Konuwa is a Featured Columnist and on-air host for Bleacher Report and Forbes. Like him on Facebook.