John Cena Announced For WWE Return In September

As first reported by Fox Sports and confirmed by WWE, John Cena is making his return to the company next month. Cena will appear on the September 1 edition of "WWE SmackDown," as well as WWE Superstar Spectacle, a live event taking place in India on September 8.

The "SmackDown" appearance will be Cena's first in WWE since July's Money in the Bank, where the WWE star surprised the crowd and teased the possibility of a future WWE WrestleMania in the United Kingdom. Cena's last match took place at WWE WrestleMania 39, where he lost to Austin Theory on night one of the event.

As for Superstar Spectacle the following week, the first edition of the event in 2021 was broadcast on television in India and was available to stream everywhere else on the WWE Network. However, according to Fox Sports, the event is not set to be televised in the United States. It's unclear if Cena plans to wrestle at either upcoming appearance, but as of now it seems most fans will only be able to catch him on the September 1 "SmackDown."

Though Cena has largely shifted his career to focus on acting, the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes in Hollywood have halted production for the time being. It's unclear if the strike had any effect on Cena's schedule or ability to make these WWE appearances a reality, or if this had already been in the works for some time.