While John Cena may never reach the heights in Hollywood that Dwayne Johnson has, the semi-retired wrestler has shown considerable skill in both action movies as well as comedies. Now, he's on board a new buddy cop movie, with an unusual buddy. Universal has just picked up the rights to an as yet untitled buddy cop movie that will be directed by Ruben Fleischer and will star Cena, and Silicon Valley's Kumail Nanjiani.
Murray Miller who wrote the recent Tour de Pharmacy, which included John Cena in its cast, will write the script for the new movie. The film has no title and Deadline doesn't include any details about what the film will even be about. Having said that "buddy cop movie with John Cena and Kumail Nanjianai" may be the last pitch I ever thought I'd hear from Hollywood, but I'll be damned if I'm not interested. John Cena has always had a solid sense of humor and his recent appearances in movies like Trainwreck and Sisters have shown that to audiences who never saw him in WWE. Kumail Nanjiani is one of the funniest comedians working today, and he's very hot right now coming off the phenomenal The Big Sick.
These two will certainly make an odd pair in a buddy cop movie. John Cena looks like a brick wall with legs, while Kumail Nanjianai mostly plays characters on the more geeky side of things. Of course, differences like that are part of what makes for a great buddy cop pairing. While we have no details about the film's actual plot, we can probably guess where this one is going. Cena plays the top cop in the precinct with a spotless record, who gets paired with Nanjiani, who works in the department's IT division or something, because his skills are necessary for an unusual case. We can hope the setup is a bit more original than that, but even if it's not, we can get past it if the movie is funny enough.
Having these two together in one film feels like fate, as both may be on the verge of greater stardom. Kumail Nanjiani has been getting rave reviews for his work on The Big Sick, which he also co-wrote. Also, this past Sunday John Cena took a bow in the ring following a loss, and while Cena says he's not retiring from wrestling entirely, it would appear that he's done as a full-time performer, which may free him up to make more movies if the opportunities are there.
This movie is probably a bit down the road, as director Reuben Fleischer currently has a little project called Venom currently on his plate that he'll likely be focusing on for a while. That will give the writer time to fine tune this script and hopefully turn it into an excellent movie. Keep watching CinemaBlend for more news on this upcoming film as it develops.
