The WWE announcement that John Cena suffered an ankle injury that has left him questionable for Sunday's Royal Rumble pay-per-view was reportedly part of a storyline rather than a legitimate setback.

On Tuesday, Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (via Robert Gunier of Wrestling Inc.) reported the injury is a work and "may have just been a way to write Cena out of" the Rumble after he traveled to Vancouver, Canada, to begin filming his latest movie.

The update falls in line with a December report from Paul Davis of WrestlingNews.co, who noted Cena was set to start work on the unnamed film Jan. 20 and remained coy about his WWE future during an interview.

WWE's statement said the two-time Royal Rumble winner injured his ankle during a Fatal 4-Way match against Finn Balor, Baron Corbin and Drew McIntyre on last week's Raw and he "exacerbated" the ailment during a gym workout Monday.

Cena had announced his entry in the Royal Rumble match during the Jan. 7 edition of Raw.

The 41-year-old Massachusetts native is tied with Ric Flair for the most WWE-recognized world championship reigns with 16.