(Update) Henry Cavill quits Superman, leaves DCEU

[Update: Where is DC going to go from here? Deadline says that they don’t really have any idea, which is why Supergirl is so important. They’ve tossed around future possible actors for Superman, including Michael B. Jordan (so hot right now), but nothing serious. That would be quite the departure from traditional casting, but it’s so far off in the future that it’s probably just a random idea somebody shouted out in the flaming room that is the DCEU production office.]

And the hits just keep on coming. 

According to THR, Henry Cavill has left the DCEU and will no longer be playing Superman. The studio and actor have not confirmed, but the report says the separation came after talks over a Shazam! cameo ran into scheduling conflicts (possibly from his Witcher casting) that couldn’t be sorted, and that has lead to future contract discussions basically shutting down because the window for him to play Supes is closing.

Why is there a window? Because of Supergirl of course! WB and DC are in the middle of basically pulling off a slow revamp of their cinematic universe since they screwed the whole damn thing up so much, and the Supergirl movie is their focus right now. That’s said to be an origin story with Supergirl as a teenager, which, if they stuck to the comic book storyline, would make Superman a baby if it’s on Krypton. Henry Cavill is a talented actor, but he’s a bit too old to play Superbaby (I have a sinking fear that that is an actual thing somewhere in a Superman comic). 

According to sources, there won’t be a new stand-alone Superman movie any time soon either, meaning Cavill will age out of the role as well. “Superman is like James Bond, and after a certain run you have to look at new actors,” a studio source told THR.

The validity of these reasons for Cavill to leave ranges widely, and you get the feeling if he had really wanted to stay they would have gotten something done. Ben Affleck already left Batman so he’s not even the first to abandon ship, but this one stings a bit more for DC. Cavill campaigned hard for the role originally and is a massive Superman fan. If he’s not prioritizing the character what does that say? I never especially took to his and Zach Snyder’s interpretation of the Man of Steel, with all the furrowed brows, but it felt like he finally got to have a little fun in Justice League. I was actually looking forward to seeing if he could do something with a happier Superman, but now it sounds like we’ll never know. 

Henry Cavill Out as Superman Amid Warner Bros.’ DC Universe Shake-Up (Exclusive) [THR]Warner Bros. Not Developing ‘Superman’ Movies With Henry Cavill As Priority Shifts To ‘Supergirl’ [Deadline]