John Cena has reaffirmed his friendship with Vince McMahon, saying he feels “no guilt nor shame” about their relationship.

Speaking to Sasha Mistlin of The Guardian while promoting Matchbox: The Movie, Cena addressed his continued support for the former WWE chairman.

“I have no guilt nor shame about my friendship and my relationship with Vince McMahon,” Cena said.

“you’re obviously going to put this in [your] article. It’s OK to love somebody when they’re not perfect.”

The Guardian described McMahon as a mentor who helped shape Cena’s career and provided a sense of family during his years travelling with WWE in the 2000s.

McMahon resigned as executive chairman of WWE’s parent company, TKO Group Holdings, in January 2024 after former WWE employee Janel Grant filed a federal lawsuit accusing him of sexual assault and trafficking. WWE was also named as a defendant. McMahon has denied the allegations.

This summer, the parties agreed to move the case from federal court into private arbitration.

Cena has spoken about his relationship with McMahon several times, consistently expressing affection for him while also acknowledging accountability.

In March 2023, following McMahon’s return to WWE’s board after reporting about hush-money payments, Cena told The Associated Press:

“There’s no way I can go on record and say I don’t love Vince McMahon.”

During a February 2024 appearance on The Howard Stern Show, weeks after Grant filed her lawsuit, Cena said:

“I’m a big advocate of love and friendship and honesty, and communication, in the same breath, I’m also a big advocate of accountability.”

He maintained that position in an April 2025 interview with The New York Times ahead of WrestleMania 41.

“I don’t care who hears it: I love Vince. I’m not downplaying anything that needs to be decided or allegations of any kind, but when I love somebody, I love them wholeheartedly.”

Asked by Us Weekly the following month about the reaction to those remarks, Cena replied: “I’m not surprised about any of that.”

JBL has also publicly discussed his friendship with McMahon. Speaking on Something to Wrestle in July, he stressed that his personal relationship did not mean he could assess the allegations.

“I like Vince, and I had no idea of the veracity of the case. I didn’t hear any of this when I was there. That does not mean that all of it might not be true,” JBL said.

“Those allegations may be true. I have no idea.”

JBL also credited McMahon with transforming “a Northeast regional territory” into “a global power”, while acknowledging that his comments could attract criticism.

“People are obviously going to take me to task over that. That’s fine,” he said.

Neither Cena nor JBL disputed Grant’s allegations in those comments.

Cena retired from in-ring competition in December 2025 following his defeat to Gunther at Saturday Night’s Main Event in Washington, D.C. His latest film, Matchbox: The Movie, premieres on Apple TV on October 9.