What If... The Rock Didn't Go To Hollywood?

Most enticing of all is The Rock vs. Shawn Michaels. Their feud was supposed to go down in when HBK returned in the early 2000s, but per Dave Meltzer, Rocky refused to work with Michaels due to personal issues going back to Johnson’s first few years with WWE.

In 2005, Johnson openly told WWE.com that he never had any interest in working with Shawn. Still, him vs. Michaels would have been a WrestleMania main event-worthy dream match, and all parties would be leaving too much money on the table by not making it happen. One would imagine that professionalism and common sense may have prevailed.

Each of the above should have benefitted immensely from The Rock’s prolonged presence. Cena, however, almost certainly would not.

WWE would’ve had no need for him as an over-pushed main event commodity had Dwayne stuck around. Thus, there’s a strong chance we’d have never been subjected to his oft-painful elevation, and his years-long stranglehold on the main event scene.

That’s not to say Cena wouldn’t have become a star, but Rocky would’ve been the company’s true headliner, not him. John’s public perception may have benefited, though. He wouldn’t be as decorated, and certainly wouldn’t have made as much money, but it’s hard to imagine so many fans turning against him without the “shoved down our throats” argument. In all likelihood, he’d embark on a run similar to peers like Batista: a main event fixture, but not an obnoxious Hulk Hogan-esque figure.

But what of Cena’s intended replacement, Roman Reigns? Well, that’s a tad more complicated.

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