Pluribus Series: John Cena's Appearance Causes a Stir

Pluribus Series: An original Apple TV series, its sixth episode titled "HDP" caused a significant stir among viewers, with many considering it "the best surprise appearance of the year." The episode featured an unexpected major star, and what added to the viewers' excitement was that this appearance had been hinted at weeks prior. The series revolves around writer Carol Sturka, who finds herself one of the few immune to a strange virus known as "The Joining," which transforms the rest of humanity into a happy, peaceful collective consciousness seeking to assimilate immune individuals peacefully.

John Cena's Appearance and His Role in Explaining HDP

John Cena: The famous actor and wrestler appeared about 19 minutes into the episode, where Carol is shown a video explaining the horrifying discovery she made in the final scene of the fifth episode. Cena, who, like 99.99% of humanity, did not succumb to "The Joining" virus, provides Carol with a detailed explanation of this discovery: that the beings who transformed into the collective consciousness (The Others) consume a human-derived protein (HDP) to maintain their bodies, as they are unable to kill animals or plants.

Viewers' Reactions to the Surprise Appearance

Viewer Reactions: Flooded social media platforms, such as X (formerly Twitter), and other forums, expressing their shock and delight at Cena's surprise appearance. One Reddit user commented, "I love celebrity cameos out of absolutely nowhere," adding, "This confused me for a few seconds before I burst out laughing." Another user on ResetEra described John Cena's appearance as "a great choice."

Cena's Prior Hints

Cena's Hints: Most surprisingly, he had hinted at his appearance in this mystery and sci-fi drama weeks earlier. He posted a photo of the protagonist "Rhea Seehorn" from the pilot episode of the series on Instagram in late November, without any caption, which raised many questions among his followers about the meaning of the image. Now, they have a clear answer.

Behind the Scenes of John Cena's Filming

Filming Behind the Scenes: On a related note, series producer "Vince Gilligan" revealed in the latest episodes of the Official Pluribus Podcast how this appearance came about. Cena filmed his scene on a rare day off, delivering his multi-page monologue in one take, although Gilligan requested two additional shots for more options. Before leaving, Cena told Gilligan he couldn't wait to watch the episode to understand what he was talking about.

Who is the Next Star?

Surprise Appearances: With Cena and actor Patrick Fabian joining the list of surprise appearances in "Pluribus," some are now wondering which famous star might appear next.