John Cena apologizes to China for calling Taiwan a country in ‘F9’ interview

John Cena, the most recent addition to the “Fast and Furious� film family, apologized to China on Tuesday for referring to Taiwan as a country — implying it was independent of China — in a recent interview promoting the international release of Universal Studios’ “F9.�

“I must say, this is very, very, very, very, very, very important, I love and respect China and Chinese people,� the actor said in Mandarin in a video posted on Chinese social media site Weibo (and translated to English via Vice News producer Tony Lin). “I am very very sorry for my mistake. You must understand, I really love and respect China and Chinese people.�

He added, “I did a lot of interviews. In one interview, I made a mistake.�

Cena’s apparent error? While talking last week to TV station TVBS, which is based in Taipei, he reportedly said, “Taiwan is the first country that can watch� the new action movie.

In doing so, the 44-year-old stepped into fraught territory: Taiwan is a self-governed democratic island of 24 million; China has regarded it as a breakaway province since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949.

Gaffe or not, “F9� opened Friday in China and took in $136 million over the weekend, according to Deadline.

Fun fact: The wrestler-turned-actor has studied Mandarin for years, initially so he could help promote his sport overseas. Less fun: Universal Studios, the film’s distributor, reportedly canceled a planned media event in Shanghai last Tuesday, citing a nonspecific security threat. It is unclear whether the apology video was related in any way to that cancellation.

Coincidentally, “F9� — which also stars Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Jordana Brewster, Ludacris and Charlize Theron — was directed by a Taiwanese American: Justin Lin, 49, grew up in Buena Park after immigrating to the U.S. from Taiwan when he was 8.

It’s Lin’s fourth directorial effort in the “Fast� franchise. “F9� is slated to open June 25 in the United States.