Peacemaker Explained: All You Need To Know About John Cena’s Character
The Suicide Squad went on to introduce DC fans to some of the weirdest DC villains ever. And none are weirder than Peacemaker, played by John Cena – the vigilante devoted to peace that he can kill literally anyone to preserve it. Now Cena’s Peacemaker is coming out in his own spinoff series on HBO Max.
Are you still not familiar with the character? Director James Gunn describes him as a superhero, supervillain, and well, the biggest douchebag in the world.
“He’s like a douchey Captain America,” revealed Cena when his take on the Peacemaker was revealed during the DC FanDome.
“[Peacemaker is] a guy who believes in peace at any cost, no matter how many people he needs to kill along the way,” Gunn added.
To understand more, let’s meet Christopher Smith, a.k.a. DC Comics’ Peacemaker who had its origin back to Charlton Comics in 1966.
Who is Peacemaker?
Born as Christopher Schmidt, Peacemaker is the only child of a wealthy couple. Smith’s father was a former concentration camp commandant for the Nazis, valuing power above all. He went on to suicide when Smith was barely five and well, Smith saw it happen. The troubled boy went on to join the military after school, where he came faced the horrific realities of war.
He was later accused of massacring innocent people and was arrested and tried for war crimes. While serving, he joined a secret Pentagon program called Project: Peacemaker. This idea later inspired him to become a crimefighter as a form of penance for crimes both he and his father committed.
Peacemaker’s Powers and Abilities
Smith is a master of weapons. He wields technologically advanced weaponry which is also very deadly and wears bulletproof body armor. The strange silver helmet on Peacemaker’s head can emit ultrasonic frequencies enough to overwhelm the senses of anyone who is in range, alongside sending scramble electronic signals. The helmet also contains sensors for detecting any hostile forces in the area.
John Cena in The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker
John Cena made his DCEU debut in 2021’s The Suicide Squad by James Gunn. The Peacemaker proves loyal to the US government in the closing moments of the film, rather than his teammates, losing a duel to the (apparent) death with Bloodsport (played by Idris Elba).
Even before the release of The Suicide Squad, a Peacemaker spinoff series was announced on HBO Max by series executive James Gunn. The series was billed as an origin story for Peacemaker, which suggested that it would serve as a prequel to The Suicide Squad. However, a post-credits scene in The Suicide Squad ended up setting up the new series, which takes place after The Suicide Squad shedding light on the Smith’s past.
