WWE Champion John Cena was in New York City Monday morning to promote The Marine on Live! with Regis and Kelly. Regis Philbin and his wife, Joy, who was filling in for Philbin's usual sidekick, Kelly Ripa, were thrilled to meet Cena and in awe of the WWE Championship. Cena even put the Championship around Philbin's waist.

"The Champ is here, everybody… Regis!" Cena said to the cheering crowd.

Philbin asked Cena about the differences between wrestling in the WWE ring and filming The Marine, which hits theaters nationwide Friday.

"Believe it or not, even though WWE does live TV 52 weeks a year, there's an audience here and when they get fired up, you get fired up," Cena said. "I've seen you here, you go crazy. Try getting into the middle of a ring with 20,000 people, cheering you on, helping you get through each night -- that's what keeps us going on our grueling schedule. What's different about doing the movie is, everything is so set, and so perfect, and you are truly living within that box, and over and over again you have to recreate that emotion, that intensity -- whatever it takes to get the final point across, whereas on RAW, it's live TV."

Impressed with Cena's star quality, Philbin asked Cena if he's ready to be a major motion picture star.

"I don't know, we'll see. If Hollywood comes calling, I'll answer the call," Cena said.

The WWE Champion promised he won't abandon the WWE fans for the Hollywood spotlight, though.

"I'm taking [the WWE Championship] with me! I'm going to stand on the Hollywood sign, holding the belt up high! We'll be all right," Cena said.

Joy Philbin pointed out that Cena comes from a large family -- he has four brothers. The WWE Champion took a moment to give a thank you to some special people in his life -- his parents.

"Believe it or not, I took my share of beatings when I was a kid, and I gotta take two seconds to thank my mom and dad," Cena said. "My mom is a saint, she raised us five, and we were hell on wheels in that household. She's a very, very strong woman, and I really thank her for kind of showing me what it takes to be WWE Champion."

The Philbins were impressed by Cena's muscular physique, and Regis encouraged Cena to flex his bicep, yelling, "Look at the gun! Look at the gun!"

"I appreciate you checking me out, thank you," Cena joked.

Regis playfully punched Cena's face, saying, "Ah, you're a pussycat."

The WWE Champion, obviously surprised by the look on his face, said, "Oh my goodness," as the audience laughed.

This morning's talk show is just one part of a media whirlwind of activity for Cena this week in preparation of the nationwide opening of The Marine on Friday. Stay tuned to WWE.com for complete coverage of the WWE Champion's busy week.

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