John Cena brought up an incident during a recent conversation with Joe Rogan, where he angered China in 2021 by identifying Taiwan as a country. This mistake resulted in a rather forced apology in Mandarin.
The former WWE star and actor reflected on this moment, sharing that the experience was educational, leaving many Americans questioning his intentions behind apologizing to the Chinese government.
While promoting the film F9, Cena apologized for the remarks he made regarding Taiwan.
He conveyed to Rogan that the incident was a tough lesson, remarking, “Just because you know the language doesn’t mean you know the culture,” which underlines how American entertainment is increasingly trying to appeal to global markets like China.
Cena recounted reading from a teleprompter in Chinese, explaining that he intended to help promote wrestling internationally.
“We do a million things like this, and one of them said, ‘Hey, Taiwan, look at this.’ It was all in Mandarin and Pinyin,” he noted. “Now, over there, they’re looking at it through a different lens, as if geopolitics is murky water.”
“It was like a Ron Burgundy moment,” Cena reflected, referring to a scene in the comedy “Anchorman” where offensive lines are read verbatim. “Everyone was like, ‘What did you just say?'”
He went on to explain the conflicting feelings he faced afterward: “I had to apologize to China, and by apologizing to China I offended my country. I’m a patriot. I love the United States of America and everything it stands for.” Yet, he felt that none of it resolved the tension; rather, it left many frustrated.
Now, he reportedly avoids speaking Mandarin altogether when asked.
“I don’t do that,” he stated. “It’s a skill I have, but I don’t understand it well enough. I haven’t done enough research to know how to refer to that area.”
The Chinese government sees Taiwan, which operates democratically and independently, as part of its territory, with threats of force being a possibility for any signs of independence.
Despite never having governed Taiwan, the Chinese Communist Party responds angrily to any recognition of the island as a sovereign state, which remains a self-governing democracy with its own elected leader and currency.
