Who Is John Cena's Wife? A Timeline of His Romance With Shay Shariatzadeh
Updated Jan. 26 2023, 5:51 p.m. ET
There's no denying that John Cena is a triple threat. He's a wrestler, actor, and host, and now he can add husband to his resume.
After his very public 2018 breakup with Total Bellas star Nikki Bella — and an even more public plea for her to take him back — John stepped out in March 2019 with a new lady in his life: Shay Shariatzadeh. In October 2020, the couple surprised everyone when they got married at an attorney's office.
So, who is John Cena's wife? We've got details on everything John has said about her publicly, who she is, how they met, and how the former wrestler handled news of his ex's baby and engagement.
John Cena and Shay Shariatzadeh went public as a couple in March 2019.
After John pleaded for Nikki to take him back on the Today show in 2018 — even going as far as to say he'd have kids with her (something he previously protested again) — it seemed like John would never find happiness with someone else while Nikki was still out there.
But, in March of 2019, John was spotted out with a mystery woman, and it was soon confirmed that he was dating Iranian-Canadian Shay Shariatzadeh. The two met while John was filming his 2019 movie Playing With Fire in Vancouver, B.C. At the time, Shay was living and working there as a project manager for tech company Avigilon.
The brunette beauty may look similar to Nikki, but the similarities end there. While John was appearing on the Today in November 2019 to promote Playing With Fire, guest host Andy Cohen asked John how his relationship with Shay differed from the one he shared with Nikki. John's response? There's no way to compare the two.
"Every experience in life is a chance for us to know who we are and who we're not," John said. "Just because I went down one avenue in life doesn't mean I'm going to repeat going down that avenue. I think if there is a learning experience for me and a takeaway for me, it's OK to be who you are and it's OK to establish boundaries."
At the same time, Nikki Bella got engaged to Artem Chigvintsev.
In early January of 2020, Nikki Bella took to Instagram to announce that she had secretly been engaged to Dancing With the Stars pro Artem Chigvintsev since November 2019. Mere weeks later, she revealed they were expected their first child together.
In the wake of the news, many wondered how John might react. After all, he had begged her to get back with him less than two years earlier. But, according to an inside source, John couldn't have been more excited that his ex is finally getting everything she wanted.
"John is very happy for Nikki and her engagement. He is very happy that she has found someone that treats her so amazingly well," the source told Hollywood Life.
"Nikki was an extremely important part of John’s life, so it does remind him of what they had, and he is also reminded of his proposal to her at Wrestlemania a few years ago. But he also has thought that they have both grown from their relationship and they both have moved on."
John Cena married his now-wife in October 2020.
On Oct. 12, 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, John and Shay said their "I do's" at a private ceremony at a courthouse in Tampa, Fla.
In July of 2022, the couple had a larger wedding ceremony in front of family and friends in Vancouver, B.C.
The following month, John's ex Nikki Bella tied the knot with Artem Chigvintsev in Paris.
Congratulations are in order to both of the happy couples!
