Henry Cavill isn’t returning as Superman – so what’s next?
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Major spoilers follow for Black Adam and Spider-Man: No Way Home.
It’s the end of an era (again), Superman fans – Henry Cavill will not be returning as the Man of Steel in the revamped DC Universe (DCU).
Cavill and new DC Studios co-head James Gunn confirmed on social media that the popular actor will not wear Superman’s iconic red cape in the future. Yes, it’s like a dagger of kryptonite in the hearts of DC fans everywhere.
Among those on the slate is Superman. In the early stages, our story focuses on an earlier part of Superman’s life, so the character isn’t played by Henry Cavill.December 15, 2022
The shocking revelation comes just two months after Cavill’s return as Superman in Black Adam’s post-credits scene. Cavill’s performance strongly implied that he signed on to reprise his famous role in the DCU, aka the rebooted version of the increasingly disconnected DC Extended Universe (DCEU). If you are interested, you can find out how to watch the DCEU movies with the help of our authoritative guide. You know, before that cinematic universe shuts down for good.
Anyway, back to Cavill’s Superman. There was even speculation that Man of Steel 2 was in development – with Cavill as the protagonist – after his Black Adam cameo as part of Gunn and co-lead Peter Safran’s DCU master plan.
However, recent rumors suggested that Man of Steel 2 wasn’t making progress after all, and that Cavill might not even be returning. And now, in a lengthy Twitter thread, Gunn confirmed that these reports are true. Instead, Gunn and Safran move on to a fledgling Superman movie, one that Cavill isn’t a part of, which all but confirms the door has been slammed on his time as Clark Kent.
With his Superman era seemingly over, what’s next for Cavill?
For starters, a shocking return to Netflix’s Witcher-Verse is incredibly unlikely.
In November, Cavill revealed that he would not be reprising his role as Geralt of Rivia after the fantasy show’s next installment – The Witcher Season 3 – is released in mid-2023. No official reason for Cavill’s departure has been given, but industry insiders have claimed he disagreed with The Witcher’s creative team about the show straying from its source material. He will be replaced by Liam Hemsworth starting in season 4, and showrunner Lauren Hissrich says she “completely understands” why the show’s fanbase is outraged by Cavill’s departure.
Whatever the reasons Cavill puts down the sword of Geralt, we’d be surprised if he makes a U-turn and returns to one of the best Netflix shows (in our opinion, anyway). It wouldn’t be fair to deprive Hemsworth of this opportunity, especially if he’s signed a multi-year contract to play the role of Geralt, assuming the series is renewed for more seasons. Furthermore, if Cavill wasn’t excited about the creative direction of Netflix’s Witcher series, his return could be interpreted as him fawning over his old job, especially if his current options are limited.
However, an actor of Cavill’s caliber won’t be out of work for long, so don’t count on him driving back to the mainland.
What else would suit Cavill? He’s been regularly linked with taking on the mantle of James Bond – find out how to watch the James Bond movies in order – so could a turn like 007 be on the cards?
Again, we’re going to file this under “extremely unlikely”. Sure, Cavill would make a great Bond. He has the physicality, charisma and quintessential Britishness to pull off the role with aplomb. However, at 39 years old, you have to wonder if he’s the right age to play Bond for an extended period of time, with Bond producer Barbara Broccoli saying she wants the franchise’s next actor to have a “10 to 12 year commitment.” for the role.
Would Cavill want to follow in the footsteps of Daniel Craig (who was also 39 when he first signed on to play Bond), and commit to another iconic multi-movie role? Probably not, in our opinion. Besides, he’s already slated to star in Argylle, an upcoming spy movie for Apple TV Plus. Would Cavill really want to be associated with two spy-focused franchises?
So how about a TV project that wouldn’t commit Cavill to an overly long multi-year deal, and would be a live-action adaptation of one of his favorite video game franchises?
Step forward Mass Effect. In December 2021, Cavill told TechRadar that he would be “interested” in starring as Commander Shepherd in a potential Mass Effect TV series if the opportunity arose. Cavill’s revelation came after rumors surfaced online – based on one of his Instagram posts, no less – that he would be starring in a Mass Effect TV show on Prime Video.
Amazon Studios is slowly assembling an exciting lineup of TV adaptations of fan-favorite video games. A live-action Fallout series is in development and, last night (Dec. 14), a TV show based on 2018’s multi-award-winning God of War was announced for Prime Video (opens in new tab). Why not add Mass Effect to the stack and hire Cavill to star in it? That would be a huge coup for Amazon if it did, especially since Amazon would have picked up one of Netflix’s most marketable stars following his departure from The Witcher.
Speaking of the competition, Marvel could get one from DC by taking on Cavill for an MCU role. Cavill has previously denied claims he’d be playing Hyperion in season 2 of Loki, but there’s definitely a role that’s perfect for him (even if it’s a one-off performance) as part of Marvel’s cinematic juggernaut. What about Sentry, who is rumored to be the villain of the upcoming Marvel Phase 5 movie Thunderbolts? Cavill has experience playing bad guys – albeit with a little experience – with his turn as August Walker in Mission Impossible: Fallout, his most famous antagonistic role. If he had been hired as someone like Sentry, it wouldn’t be a strange idea for viewers to see Cavill as a villain.
If we’re staying in geek territory, why not cast Cavill as the lead in a new live-action Warhammer movie? He is a big fan of the table game. Wouldn’t it be a dream of his (and Warhammer fans around the world) to star in a movie based on Games Workshop’s fantasy-based series or the Warhammer 40,000 alternative?
Finally, why not just bring him back as Superman? In his Twitter thread, Gunn confirmed that he and Cavill are discussed other DCU opportunities (opens in new tab) that could be good for the actor. Well, the Man of Steel is already perfect for him. And if the DCU eventually explores its own multiverse (disregarding the DCEU’s own opinion, of course), Cavill’s Superman could make a crowd-pleasing return as part of any multiversal team in the future.
Spider-Man: No Way Home has done a fantastic job of bringing together Tom Holland, Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Men on the big screen. Meanwhile, Sony’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and the upcoming Across the Spider-Verse sequel, plus the MCU, all explore comic book-based multiverses. Why not take a leaf out of the Marvel and Sony books and do the same thing in the DCU and have Cavill return one last time? About you, James and Peter.
For more DC-based content, read how to watch the Batman movies in order. Or see which DCEU movies made it onto our list of the best superhero movies.