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The post The other WWE star James Gunn wanted for Peacemaker instead of John Cena<\/a> appeared first on ClutchPoints<\/a>.<\/p>\n Before landing on WWE star <\/a>John Cena<\/a> as Peacemaker, the series\u2019 creator, <\/a>James Gunn<\/a>, wanted one of his rivals, Dave Bautista, for the DC part<\/a>.<\/p>\n Of course, this should come as no surprise. Gunn previously directed Bautista in the highly successful Guardians of the Galaxy series for Marvel.<\/p>\n Appearing on The Howard Stern Show, Gunn recalled wanting Bautista to play the part<\/a>. However, Bautista, a hot commodity, had to chase the paycheck.<\/p>\n \u201cI wrote the character of Peacemaker for him,\u201d Gunn said. \u201cWe offered him the role, but he was offered two movies and we weren\u2019t paying him a lot, so he had to go where the money was.\u201d<\/p>\n So, how did Gunn land on Cena? Well, he was a fan of Cena\u2019s work in the comedy Trainwreck, which led them to connect. They clicked, becoming \u201cinstant friends, and the role was Cena\u2019s. Cena would first appear in The Suicide Squad, which Gunn directed, before getting his HBO Max spin-off series.<\/p>\n \u201cSince then, I\u2019ve worked with him more than any other actor because I\u2019ve done two seasons of Peacemaker, [The] Suicide Squad, and we are going to be doing more together,\u201d Gunn praised. \u201cHe is a fantastic guy, a fantastic actor.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite what you may think, Cena didn\u2019t have to audition for the role of Peacemaker. \u201cI just put him in it,\u201d Gunn said on The Howard Stern Show.<\/p>\n However, he did concede that it began as a \u201csimple\u201d role before it got fleshed out. A moment on The Suicide Squad became the genesis of the character\u2019s evolution.<\/p>\n \u201cIt just got deeper and deeper,\u201d he explained. \u201cThere was a moment on the set of The Suicide Squad where I went to this close-up [of] John, and I went all the way in on his eyes, and I saw the stuff that was occurring behind his eyes, and I thought, Wow, this guy could really act<\/i>. And I think if you see Season 2, he is absolutely not only funny, not only grounded, but also incredibly emotional, and I can\u2019t wait for people to see the rest of the season.\u201d<\/p>\n The rest is history. Cena has run with the role, and Gunn loves the series. \u201cI think I love the Peacemaker show more than anything else I\u2019ve ever done,\u201d he raved.<\/p>\n There are still four more episodes remaining in Peacemaker Season 2. A new episode will premiere every Thursday on HBO Max through October 9, 2025.<\/p>\n Related: Sydney Sweeney hits hard as Christy Martin in biopic trailer<\/a><\/p>\nHow did WWE star John Cena land the Peacemaker role?<\/b><\/h2>\n