The Explanation for John Cena’s Appearance in Apple TV’s Pluribus
No. 1 series on Apple TV and absolutely essential viewing, after all.
In the last episode, Carol finds human body parts inside a massive warehouse freezer — equally concerning and unsettling. She hurries to Las Vegas to connect with fellow survivor Mr. Diabaté to relay the news, but he is already aware. In fact, he switches on the television to let the alien hive mind clarify the situation and, surprise, it’s John Cena.
Why on earth is John Cena present? In a chat with Deadline, Gilligan elaborated: “We simply thought, ‘Who could better make the concept of consuming human flesh more acceptable than John Cena, you know?'” Gilligan mentioned a gathering in Tampa, Florida, to film the segment, highlighting that Cena is “a busy individual,” but also “kind enough to film this piece.”
Gilligan detailed the reasoning behind selecting Cena, designating him as the “human-derived protein” spokesperson due to his likable nature. “‘Man, I’d love to grab a beer with that guy. So why shouldn’t he justify why human-derived protein is the solution for humanity now?” In the scene, Cena presents the entire idea as sensible, which, according to Gilligan, was the aim. “It simply made us chuckle when we considered having him do it. And fortunately, he agreed,” Gilligan noted.
