Superman Reborn: Henry Cavill In Talks To Return To Role
An absolute sea-change has occurred within the DC Extended Universe over the last few days. First came the news that Zack Snyder’s Justice League would see release on HBO Max on HBO Max, and now The Wrap, Deadline, and Variety all report that Henry Cavill isn’t done with Superman.
It’s generally understood that Cavill was moving on from the role after the box office disappointment of Justice League and the apparent disinterest at Warner Bros. in regards to making a sequel to Man of Steel. Cavill stars in the Netflix hit series The Witcher, but according to sources that the aforementioned trades have spoken to, he is negotiating a return to the role of Superman.
The most important element of the report is that Warner Bros. is not developing a Man of Steel sequel at this time. This is in part due to filming on The Witcher taking up a lot of time in his schedule and in part due to the last few movies featuring Superman performing below Warner Bros.’s expectations. Cavill’s return is thought to be involved in either a cameo or other role in a future DC franchise film that is not based entirely on the character of Superman. Warner Bros. was unavailable for comment.
How this next appearance (or, with luck, multiple appearances) will take shape raises some questions, with the current Coronavirus global pandemic putting a freeze on production in Hollywood, and with the state of flux within DC Films. With the huge success of Joker and timeline shifting of Wonder Woman 1984 and the reboot of The Batman, it seemed as if the Man of Steel was simply left out of the equation.
Both Wonder Woman 1984 and The Suicide Squad have wrapped production, precluding (one presumes) an appearance by Cavill there. Superman will not be seen at all in The Batman, which currently is not part of the shared universe, so appearing there is also out of the question. The next DC Films productions slated once filming resumes include Shazam 2, Black Adam, The Flash, and Aquaman 2.
Superman already appeared in the last scene of the first Shazam! film, with the superhero appearing to the aid of a bullied friend of the title character as they had lunch together. (The cameo was infamously done without Cavill’s involvement, with Superman’s head kept out of frame.) A stand-in for Cavill’s Superman made a brief appearance after a failed bid to include the star in that film. Aquaman 2 or The Flash might make the most sense, as those characters shared time with Superman in Justice League.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League will release on HBO Max sometime in 2021. Meanwhile, the studio’s version of the film is available to watch on Blu-Ray, DVD, Digital, and Streaming formats. Zack Snyder’s Justice League will be released in the same year as The Suicide Squad, The Batman, and Black Adam, presuming that no further delays on any project take place.
Darby Harn is a contributor for Screenrant, CBR.com, Star Wars News Net, and Movie News Net. He is the author of the sci-fi superhero novel EVER THE HERO. His short fiction appears in Strange Horizons, Interzone, Shimmer, and other venues.
