Reports have been going around saying John Cena will be taking a lengthy break after Wrestlemania 33. The former 16-time WWE champion has not been advertised for any of the WWE events following Wrestlemania 33.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter confirmed the rumors about the star's plan to go on a hiatus after WWE's biggest pay-per-view event of the year. Cena's sabbatical will likely be to film his new movie "The Pact", which is slated for to be released on April 20, 2018. This will mark the fourth hiatus Cena has taken in a little over a year.

The former champion has been taking intermittent breaks from the WWE as he has been focusing more on doing projects outside of wrestling. Cena missed nearly two months of action in late 2015 following October's Hell in a Cell pay-per-view, but returned shortly and then went on another hiatus to undergo surgery on his shoulder.

Cena made a one-off appearance at Wrestlemania 32 in a segment involving Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and the Wyatt Family. However, he did not return to a full-time schedule until May 2016. He then went on another lengthy leave following October's No Mercy PPV, before returning on the December 27 episode of Smackdown Live.

According to Wrestlezone, John Cena's hiatus following Wrestlemania 33 will be up to eight months. Cena has been the face of the WWE for more than a decade and is one of the company's leading merchandise sellers. Ever since he received his main event push, Cena has become one of pro wrestling's most polarizing figures often eliciting a mixed reaction from the fans whenever he shows up.

Forbes reports that Cena's lengthy absence can result in lower house show attendance for the WWE. House attendance in 2016 was at its lowest in 10 years, and this was when Cena missed more than seven months of action from the ring.