Could The WWE Survive A Benoit-like Scenario... With Cena?

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

First of all, I want to preface this by saying my intentions are not to disgrace the Benoit family further or to wish ill on John Cena, in any way. My question is purely theoretical and I feel it belongs in the WWE section rather than the Raw section because it pertains to the entire company, rather than just Cena's specific brand.

When the Benoit scandal went down it tanked the wrestling business. It brought a lot of bad mainstream attention, and caused a domino effect of things that resulted in the McMahon family spending all their time and resources trying to change the product and cover their company's ass in order to save what little face they had left. One can even make a strong case that Linda McMahon lost her shot at the Senate seat because of things like Benoit and the deaths of several other former wrestlers.

The only thing that saved the WWE and allowed this all to fade (in the media's eyes, certainly not the fans) is that Benoit wasn't a mainstream player. He was a great champion and he main-evented WrestleMania, but he wasn't exactly the Derek Jeter of the wrestling world. So what do you think would happen if a guy like John Cena snapped, and was found guilty of murdering innocent people, or even just committing suicide? Again, no ill will is meant towards Cena, it's merely a question I feel could be interesting to explore.

Cena is the name and face of pro wrestling today. He's not quite Hulk Hogan, but he's what they have to work with. He does all the media stunts, the autograph signings, the movies, the commercials, the interviews, etc. He's the go-to guy and the name the media turns to a LOT. if something tragic were to happen to him that put the entire WWE into the spotlight like it did years ago with Benoit, I don't think they could bounce back. I think it would force government involvement, pass a few laws in the interest of keeping people safe, and quite possibly drive somebody like Vince McMahon to the point of insanity. At the very least the wrestling world would never be the same...

Would the WWE be ok?
If they did survive, what would the industry look like?

 

[poppycock]

In my opinion the WWE will always survive when it comes to things like that and the company is bigger than any of the names on the roster despite how popular they may be at the time. If Cena "snapped", lost it, commited a murder or took countless amounts of drugs it would no doubt result in questions being asked from the media and people outside and inside the world of pro wrestling but at the end of the day I can't see it ever causing the WWE to not survive and carry on doing what they do and have done for many years. It may produce a bit of an odd period at first and leave the WWE looking for ways to adapt and approach things in a different way but they would bounce back as always. In the long run I don't feel the WWE would suffer from losing John Cena either because despite the unarguable amount of profit and attention he brings from young and old fans of the sport he is not the be and end all of WWE... he is just the "now" and there is always life after a "face of the company" parts ways..Hogan, Austin, Rock... life goes on in some form or other and the WWE grows, changes and evolves into something new which I am sure would continue to be the case.

 

[Oracular Spectacular]

I actually doubt it. If the Benoit incident never happens they would have been fine, but since wrestling(The WWE Especially) has been under such a strong microscope since the Benoit incident then if Cena were to "Lose It" then it would hurt the WWE beyond repair.

Let me put it into perspective. John Cena has broken records when it comes to the make-a-wish foundation. Cena is a very recognizable figure to even the non-watching wrestling fan(Benoit wasn't) Cena is the cornerstone of the company and if the #1 guy were to to something as bad or worse than Benoit then the company would be under such strong scrutiny that there would have to be major changes that would effect wrestling as a whole for years.

And i emphasize wrestling. There wouldn't be an arena or bingo hall in the US that would want to promote a sport where the number one person committed such an act. No sponsors, nothing. Wrestling would revert to promoters having to buy buildings and run shows out of there. It would basically be back to a territory system but so small and obsolete that it wouldn't be anything. Not to mention WWE and most likely every other promotion with a TV deal would pull the shows off the air.

It would be a death sentence.

 

[RicoLen]

In a word, no.

It might be a slow death that took another 5-10 years, but if it was Cena that did the double murder suicide, that would be the end of Vince McMahon and the WWE. Benoit screwed things up for the WWE so badly as it is that we're still recovering from it, and he was never really very well liked outside the industry, Cena is big not only in the industry but he's got a fairly good sized amount of notoriety outside the industry as well.

The only exception would be if Cena was found to have been leading a double life and that double life could in no way shape or form be attributed to the life of a pro-wrestler.

But if Cena, who the WWE holds as a true role model to the kids, and as an example of why pro-wrestling should be considered family friendly programming were to have had some kind of steroid problem that caused him to snap. Not only would the WWE be sentenced to death, but Vince would have a hard time staying out of jail. He'd be held in the same light as Micheal Jackson's doctor, and be found guilty of criminal negligence and possibly manslaughter.

 

[Foshinzo]

Interesting question, OP.

I suppose that I walk the line between yes and no, but I'll ask instead, "What do you mean by survive?" Do you mean that the company would literally tank into nothingness, or just completely fall from grace, yet still exist?

If you ask that the WWE would completely bomb, I would say no. What happened with Benoit was so horrible that it could happen to Trent Baretta and it's still the same PR hit. If it happened to Cena, then it would probably reach more people, but it still affects the mainstream news the same with this headline: WWE Superstar ____ kills self and family. You can post any name there and it's a massive hit/tragedy that shakes the company up.

The only thing that saved them with Benoit was that Benoit proved that if you don't protect your body, this industry will kill you, so all they had to do was stop with chair shots to the head and mind concussions, which is right for them to do, anyway.

If you really want to get into it, Owen's death was much worse for the WWF/E, because his was actually their fault. Benoit would have ended up in that scenario anyway, after years of not having his concussions treated and willingly taking chair shots to the head. Benoit's death had a much more far reaching effect in the media, but Owen's death was almost impossible for the WWF at that time to defend.

I think WWE would survive if a guy as high profile as Cena or Orton did something as horrible, because there are some things that you just can't stop. Benoit's death was something that probably would have eventually happened, with the only chance at his survival being either forced retirement or the necessary changes that had to be made, anyway. The brain doesn't heal once it's damaged, and Benoit was so far behind that only had you predicted it could you have stopped it.

Do I think WWE would take a massive hit, though, especially now with the PG image they try to maintain? Of course I do. But, I think the worst that could happen would be more frequent physicals for wrestlers and a severely painful memory for everyone involved. The WWE would survive, though it would be tough to get away from, but survive, nonetheless.

 

[I_Like_All_Wrestling]

Yes. Wrestling is not as big as it used to be and doesn't get much mainstream attention. Most people outside of wrestling don't know who John Cena is. Everyone knew Hogan, almost everyone knew Randy Savage. Everyone knew Stone Cold and The Rock. Cena is the biggest star in the WWE but is not nearly as big as they'd have you believe. Sure, they'd take a hit since he is the face and plays the role of the ultimate good guy, not to mention is a top merchandise seller. But without him, even with some sort of scandal, I think they would be okay.

 

[BK Styles]

My belief? The WWE would survive...just. At least for a while, at any rate. They'd be ripped apart for sure, and the current health and safety system (no head chair shots, no blood, wellness policy) would be taken to new heights, and it would alter the product forever.

Now, we've all read the reports that the WWE isn't selling anywhere near as well as it was ten years ago; if something like this happened, then they'd be lucky to draw TNA-wise. Very few (if any) TV companies would touch them, and viewership would be gone. What parent would let their child watch a product where the number 1 poster boy did something like that. as an adult, would you watch it? A top performer in the midcard is one thing, but the main guy? I wouldn't. As has been mentioned, from a tragically business point of view, Benoit wasn't the top star, so to cover him up in the history books wasn't too hard. With Cena, it would be virtually impossible, and would be in everyones thoughts each time they'd see a WWE logo.

Not only that, but it would have massive reprocussions on the industry. Indy feds may survive fairly intact, but TNA would be screwed to a point. A company with arguably fewer restrictions on performers and what they do in and out of the ring; I think they would be targeted, and hit hard. Spike wouldn't want them, and if WWE were to struggle for network coverage, then I can't but think TNA would struggle even further. It depends how outwards the effect would spread.

It's really hard to say. The effect would be so profound that I don't think anyone can accurately predict it. But one things for sure; pro-wrestling that we know and love would be changed forever, in some ways for the better, but in others possibly for the worse. And for the more moral reasons than that, I hope to god that it never happens.

 

[willross]

They would survive because people will not stop watching because of it but the way the media portrays wrestling and wrestlers will get back to how it was when they were just roided up fake fighters.

It would be devestating no doubt, more so than Benoit cause Cena is the biggest star in the business today and Benoit was just midcard. But that will never happen, Cena is a pretty clean cut guy other than the odd night he does a little drinking, making this the most ridiculous "what if" i have ever ever ever ever ever seen

 

[IHeartWrestling]

Honestly, I do think the WWE would fall apart. John Cena is huge in the WWE, as much as some of us dont like to recognize it. And if something that drastic were to happen to him, the entire company would collapse. I mean come on, its a PG show now, and with thousands of kids watching at home they'd be forced to amp up their wellness policy, health checks, and probebly drastically lower the amount of moves the wrestlers are aloud to use. Now, doesn't sound so fun anymore to watch, right? Kids are a large part of the audience, and if that happened, most of them would stop watching. There goes a large part of their audience. Plus, you'd lose even more viewers because with all the new stipulations added, that wont be as much fun to watch, and lose popularity. Eventually, I think the WWE would end up down the drain.

 

[reed214]

could the WWE survive if cena had a Benoit incident---yes.

the wwe is bigger than any star. hogan, rock, cena, flair and more hof-ers and legends could go on a shooting spree and the wwe would still survive b/c they are a wrestling company and the company can withstand any past stars going on their own or horrible incident.

they will make other stars to replace them. people will want to see wrestling. even after the worst things that has happened (benoit, arquette world champion, robocop, shockmaster, no limit soldiers, TNA+Hogan), the business survived.

and WWE being the top dog, again, will always be bigger than any talent.

 

[oldhamandy1]

It's impossible to answer, it would depend on why he did it. If he just lost it and killed his wife and kids, the WWE may not be at fault and would perhaps recieve sympathy. If it was like for like with Benoit then that would be it, it would make a mockery of every change they've made. I know I couldn't watch it, as I'd feel the WWE were a disgrace. But that isn't going to happen the continued suspensions are proof that they punish drug users, and I have no doubt Cena would be added to that list if he were to break the rules. He and no-one else for that matter does the stupid stuff Benoit does, eg. chairshots to the back of the head. Let's not also forget Edge was forced to retire after a brain scan, they look after the wrestlers now. Interesting question but at the same time needless, because it would never happen the same way.

It would be worth asking what if Cena copied some top sports stars in commiting suicide because of a deep seated depression that was unkown to his co-workers?

 

[Pedigree1]

it be tough for them to survive no doubt!! I dont think they could survive in the long run it be a slow death for sure Cena what has like 200 make a wish appearances has broken records on his way to breaking flairs record of 16 titles!! Cena is loved by kids Women and Guys like it or not we wish we were him i can admit it at least!! If Cena did this horrible act WWE be done within 5-7 years!! This act they could not recover from

 

[Junkfood34]

the wwe would survive should cena have a benoit moment...but they would have a hard time to find the next face of wwe that comes close to cenas level

 

[SD619]

One point that no one has brought up till now is that a Benoit-like incident involving Cena will not only affect WWE but the whole of professional wrestling. WWE is the most famous professional wrestling and hence such a huge scandal will not affect WWE but the whole industry.

As for WWE surviving, it might just survive. The ratings will drop drastically and they might have to cancel a few of their weekly shows. There will be many media outbursts against it, some sort of governmental inquiry and restrictions etc. but WWE might just survive it if they continue to concentrate on the product.

But, they will not be able to sweep Cena under a rug like they did with Benoit.

 

[Notorious718]

ARE YOU KIDDING! John Cena dead?

I would watch everyday...

Cena committing suicide is the best thing that could happen to the WWE, and NO! I'm not joking. I really hate him that much.

RIP Chris love ya

Wow, how terrible it must be to be you having that screwed up mentality where you would wish suicide on any human being let alone someone who children look up to as a role model. The fact that you would actually wish for Cena to commit suicide for the sake of your entertainment says far more about you and your lack of morals than it does about Cena himself.

To answer the question, Cena committing suicide would no doubt hurt the company in a big way since he was pivotal in bringing professional wrestling back to mainstream. When people these days think pro wrestling, they think of John Cena the undisputed face of WWE today. If Cena were to commit suicide, I think the media wouldn't find themselves looking too favorably on WWE especially if the circumstances were similar to Benoit's.

Business-wise and television-wise, this could especially hurt WWE since there isn't really anyone who has been groomed to succeed Cena as the face of the entire company. Though you could argue Orton and Punk are definite and probably the most likely possibilities out of everyone on the entire current roster I don't think either of them could make the company as much money through merchandise sales. Yes, I get Punk surpassed Cena before but whether he can continuously do that for another say five years straight is yet to be seen. Bottom line is that pro wrestling is a business first and foremost. Removing Cena from the picture does hurt WWE in the short term. In the long term? Hard to say. They've bounced back from the Benoit scandal but this scenario has their top face gone for good. I want to think that just as before, WWE can move past an incident like this and continue to evolve and I'm sure they could.

 

[JWGunslinger]

ARE YOU KIDDING! John Cena dead?

I would watch everyday...

Cena committing suicide is the best thing that could happen to the WWE, and NO! I'm not joking. I really hate him that much.

RIP Chris love ya

You know, it's one thing to think something like this as a joke, but to legitimatly want a wrestler to commit suicide because you don't like him is about as fucking twisted and stupid as you can get. I wonder, do you realize that these are people just like you and me who play characters just like actors in movies to entertain us? Well whether you do or not, try....just try to realize it's television and anyone who is so invested that they want to see someone literally die is off their fucking rocker.

If something like this happened the WWE they would be fine in the end, sure it would be a major hit to the company and to the fans but thye would recover. With Benoit it was big and it was bad but with Cena it would be much worse considering he's the face of the company and he's meant to do big things for the rest of his career, assuming they would do the same thing with him that they did with Chris there would be a lot of history removed and lost forever. Imagine all the major matches and events of such a huge career like Cena's erased from existance, it would be a big blow to lose so much wrestling history. Not only that but merchandise would plummet and I wouldn't be surprised if alot of younger viewers stopped watching or were forced to stop by their parents, some may stay and some who stopped may come back and flock to another superstar like Orton but the blow would have some impact on fans watching without a doubt. So it would be horrible and tragic just as Benoit's, but like that case the WWE would be able to recover and move on.

 

[FearMyBeard]

True, that the WWE is a major establishment with tons of resources and basically the face of the wrestling industry on a global perspective.

Here's my thing though:
Any current member of the WWE committing suicide(Or worse, double-murder and suicide) will be a huge blow to WWE's image. Be it the most insignificant wrestler and heck even just backstage crew, it's gonna be a blow. But having the face of today's WWE, a global figure, their money man, do a heinous act the like of which Benoit committed? From my perspective, the WWE would take such a HUGE blow from that incident that they may never regain their popularity or perhaps take seriously significant time in doing so. They won't be canceled(They've got tons of resources), but the PR damage can be irreversible that would impact them negatively short-term and long-term that it may very well lead to their downfall and maybe the wrestling business in general would take a big hit as well.

Additional note, for those knowledgeable of the topic:
I wasn't actively watching the WWE during the Benoit-debacle nor was I aware yet of internet fans of wrestling and the insider scoops some sites provide but I have a question....

Did the Benoit double-murder suicide have a GREAT impact on the WWE? Were the ratings, buyrates, etc. took a major hit as well?

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

I think that the WWE would have died a slow death had John Cena committed a double murder/ suicide. It would not have closed down overnight but it would have closed down eventually. We all know that ratings declined when Benoit died. A lot of people stopped seeing it, possibly forever. Well, that decline in ratings would have been much bigger had Cena committed the murders. The kids in the audience, Cena's biggest fanbase and currently WWE's biggest fanbase, would have been shattered and would have probably never watched wrestling again. Merchandise sales would have declined, ratings would have been around the 1.0 mark, it would have been a post apocalyptic scenario in the wrestling world. In such a scenario WWE would have had to eventually close down. Another point worth noting here is that the WWE could not have just wiped Cena off history like Benoit, at least not with the same level of control and accuracy and that would have been detrimental for the WWE.

Another reason why this would have been so earth shattering is because of the character that Cena portrays on screen. People would never believe in a heroic figure again, at least in the near future. Maybe that would have lead to a rise of anti heroish characters but it would have become boring after a while with everyone trying to play an antihero.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I think that the WWE would ultimately survive such an incident, but there would probably be a complete overhaul of the company.

One reason why the Wellness Policy was implemented in the first place was because Congress was legitimately considering regulating the WWE. In a nutshell, Vince was extremely worried that he was about to get bent over and take it up the tailpipe from the federal government.

The Benoit tragedy has made everyone in wrestling look at wrestling in a different light. In all honesty, most of us never really thought much about what sort of possible neurological damage wrestlers could be and/or were doing to themselves inside the ring. It's so obvious in hindsight the kind of chaos unprotected shots to the head could do, especially from a steel chair being swung by men that can bench press 400 pounds. The WWE has banned the use of certain moves, like the traditional piledriver for instance, due to the potential danger.

The Wellness Policy isn't just for checking for illegal drugs, it can also be used to diagnose injuries or diseases. A few years back, a Wellness Policy check up on MVP revealed that he had an undiagnosed heart condition that could have killed him. He had surgery to correct it and he's been fine. That one instance in and of itself justifies the existence of the Wellness Policy. More recently, Kevin Nash was pulled from his match with CM Punk because something was found during a physical examination. It's never been revealed what it was that the doctors found, but it was obviously serious enough for WWE to pull Nash out of a match.

John Cena being in a Benoit-type of scenario would be a huge blow not only to WWE but to wrestling in general. At the same time, however, the WWE no longer turns a blind eye to what's going on with its wrestlers outside of the ring. Because of what happened with Benot, they can't really afford to. The WWE, the wrestlers, fans and even outsiders know more now and recognize more potential hazards now than we did then. It's always possible that, should this ever happen, that WWE could miss something. At the same time, there's a fine line between keeping tabs on the health and well being of the wrestlers and trying to police their lives. The WWE can do a lot and they currently do a lot to keep on top of stuff like this I think. They've made very good, honest efforts and, for the most part, I think have done really as much as they can.

Also, I think the WWE spin machine would be able to take some heat from the company by pointing fingers at the rest of the wrestling world. After all, look at the hazardous conditions and rampant drug use on the independent circuit. Look at TNA and ROH. To my knowledge, they don't have any sort of Wellness Policy set up in place. Whether you love WWE or hate it with all your being, you can't deny that the WWE is at the very least trying to do something to combat problems that have been plaguing the rest of the wrestling world for a very long time.

 

[Benz19]

I don't think they would survive in my opinion, its always hard to think about this situation, it would make world wide news as it would be the second time, i think it would bring major changes to the wwe, implications are always hard to judge when its not occured yet

 

[harrythem]

I'd like to think they'd be able to but, honestly, I can't see it.

Hell, look at their arse over tit way of handling the Benoit stuff....They took a bad media situation and magnified it one hundred fold with their parade of stupid comments, stupid interviews, dreadful statements and the like....The media interests would be even larger if it was Cena who did it and, to me, I couldn't see Vince being able to deflect the flak away this time.

Thankfully Cena seems sane...built like a radioative triceratops, but sane

 

[poppycock]

As somebody mentioned I think it depends on what you mean by survive. If the WWE had another Benoit scenario take place then I am pretty sure a lot of finger pointing and questions would come their way and would result in some action being taken. I think it would result in the WWE losing a few contracts with the media.. resulting in a less mainstream product for a while...until they could prove over a long period of time that things have improved and this would probably result in many more boundries being put on the product and I personally would probably not find whatever form the company would be left in very entertaining. Who knows maybe Vince would all but give up on Wrestling and focus on other aspects of entertainment but his name would no doubt be looked at through weary eyes nomatter what he involved himself in. I really feel at the end of the day there will always be a WWE though..nomatter what, so it would survive in that sense. As long as people want to see the product I am sure it will be around. It's all speculation though and impossible to comment on with any real merit.

What about personal views and opinions if such a thing happend? Would it change how you view the sport and would you still want to watch the product?

 

[One to Remember]

cena is more intertwined with WWE and is the guard of WWE's gateway to the World. Thats why it would hurt WWE so badly. With the fans it would be unexplainable to the younger ones, create a darkened atmosphere and their parents would shy them away from it. Any more debacles on par with Benoit would lead to more government oversight if not the collapse of WWE. Which most of you have not mentioned is the legal ramifications for WWE wrestlers going haywire to that degree. WWE might be put under someone elses control, the state athletic commision might retake its authority, contracts might be voided and veto'd. Vince could not cope with a take over..

 

[Dagger Dias]

The WWE could survive such an incident but it would be MUCH worse for them than Benoit was. When the Benoit incident happened, he was no longer one of their top guys. He had just lost the US Championship to MVP and was headed to ECW. Cena is the face of the federation and has been for over 5 years. If this happened then WWE would be in huge trouble because their biggest star and representative just made them look awful. The wrestling industry as a whole would end up changing. WWE would be in emergency mode as far as finding a new top guy and any other organizations such as TNA who follow similar ideas would rethink a few things as well.

 

[hollowpoint]

If the same thing happened to Cena that happened to Benoit, the WWE would take a HUGE hit, but in the overall, it would be ok. What Ive come to notice is the WWE is bigger than any one Superstar. The unique thing about the business of professional wrestling is that in the nature of the business, it usually never ends well. Either someone is found dead in a hotel room due to overdose, or someone stays around longer than they should be. Benoit's murder/suicide was just another, although HUGE, way of how a wrestler comes to the end of his rope. It got terrible press and put the WWE in a bad light, but instead of fading, the WWE flipped it and turned that negative into something positive. Everything they do now is a product of what happened. All the positive programs and the numerous campaigns the WWE is apart of are all because of Benoit.

If this happened to Cena, which I seriously doubt because of the type of person he is, it would cripple the WWE, but the company would recover and survive.