Superman casting rumors were heating up this week and now it’s final: English actor Henry Cavill will play the Man of Steel in the Zack Snyder reboot. Cavill, 28, is not a big name here — he’s currently starring in The Tudors — but he was previously considered for both Batman and James Bond, so obviously studios have had their eye on him for a while. According to Deadline:
“He’s got an amazing quality. He doesn’t look too much like Reeve and Routh but he’s big and strong and he has a very modern feel to him,” a Warner Bros exec just told us. “We’re really going to try and make Superman as contemporary as possible.”
Cavill joins fellow Brits Christian Bale and Andrew Garfield as the three biggest superheroes of all, leaving Ryan Reynolds, Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr. to hold up the American flag in the superhero genre.
Cavill’s previous sort-of comics movie experience includes a role in STARDUST, but he’ll next be seen in a myth-inspired actioner, THE IMMORTALS, playing Theseus, a role which he bulked up for, according to the director:
Tarsem joked, “I told him, I don’t want a six-pack, I want an eight pack. He was pretty pudgy when I first met him. But now? Hey, I’d f–k him.”
Hm.
Earlier in the week, True Blood’s Joe Manganiello, (above) was rumored to be a front runner for Superman, for obvious reasons.
However, Cavill brings a much stronger acting resume. Christopher Nolan is producing the film, which is expected to open in December 2012.
Well this news could be a lot worse.
Reynolds is from Vancouver by the way. In Canada.
He sure “looks the part” in the 2nd picture posted above. I’m just glad there’s movement on the project at this point. I’m looking forward to seeing what they do with it.
According to his profile at IMDb, Cavill is still 27 (for a few more months). It also gives his height as 6′ 1″, slightly shorter than most of the screen Supermen (Supermans?).
Cavill’s actually a damn good actor. So I’m really happy with this choice!
Lance Roger Axt
The AudioComics Company
I loved Cavill cast as Sir Charles Brandon in The Tudors, he is probably the best actor to be cast as Superman (no offense to C. Reeve).
He has great charm, and a wonderful smile that lights up a room, but his physique is good enough that you know he could kick your ass if he wanted to.
He is not so big a name that you picture him from some other part, but has a proven resume of what he’s capable of…..a great choice, and I’m very excited to see him as The Man of Steel!
And so, no love for Tom Welling.
You’ve got to be fucking kidding!!!!!!!!! This has got to be a fucking joke!!!!!!!! These kind of jokes aren’t funny, except when the jokes on the joker, and the joker is dead.
yet another (yawn….) reboot. It seems eerything is being rebooted and only 10-20 years after the original movie. It is pretty pathetic, only Batman reboot was worth spending money on. This reboot will probably be lame and let me guess, like 4 previous superman movies, the bad guy will be: Lex Luthor! (surprise, surprise, he will get kryptonite from krytonite-depot, and etc…) Have the studios run out of stories or originality that they are desperate enough to reboot everything??? And for the record Superman will always be Christopher Reeve.
Will people ever get over Chris Reeve as Superman? It’s time to move on.
@ Allen – Some people still aren’t over George Reeves! I’m kinda partial to Kirk Alyn myself…
David Wilson will always be Superman!
Naveed: “yet another (yawn….) reboot. It seems eerything is being rebooted and only 10-20 years after the original movie.”
Hate to break it to you, but an entirely NEW generation of people have been born since the Christopher Reeve Superman movies debuted and most have never seen them, period.
Looks like rebooting a property every 10-20 years will be the rule and NOT the exception, from now on, to continually reach new generations of viewers.
Snikt Snakt – you are right about the new generation, good point. I guess specially for superman (first movie is 30 years old), so maybe it will please younger fans. I still think Reeves was the best thus far, but while I agree with your statement, I still am not sure what the reboot will bring as new material or refreshing ideas for Superman. Don`t get me wrong, I love superman, buy the comics and all, but we all know it will be the same recycled story as in the past with Lex Luthor and Kryptonite, Lois love, powerless, power back, etc….I just don`t see how it will be entertaining. As for rebooting other super hero movies, like spider-man, that is just sad and lame….cash gimmick.
Cavill is a great choice. He’s a more than competent actor, has that slightly too-good-to-be-true , but slightly innocent quality that Christopher Reeve had and I think Superman NEEDS . He also has very little baggage, so will BE the role in the way that C. Reeve was.
I have a lot of faith in Nolan too. This is looking good so far.
” but an entirely NEW generation of people have been born since the Christopher Reeve Superman movies debuted and most have never seen them, period.”
You mean there’s a whole generation of people that haven’t seen Superman 3,4 and Superman Returns? Lucky bastards.
Not a bad choice. Given what happened during his original selection as Superman, I would hope they actually pull this movie off in a hurry. Quality may take a hit though.
I am surprised they fired Brand Routh and the cast of Superman Returns, I thought Routh was the perfect actor to take over Christopher Reeve’s role. I guess when they mention Cavill resembles neither Reeve nor Routh, Routh was probably chosen because he looks like Reeve. I never really thought that when Routh was Superman, but he had a resemblance to Reeve when he was Clark Kent.
Anyway, he is also short, only 6’1″ while Reeve was 6’4″ and Routh is 6’3″. Cavill would be better for James Bond. Anyhow I think the Man of Steel is going to bomb at the box office despite the fact that Christopher Nolan is producing it, unless he is directing it, the movie has no chance of success. As far as him being British being an issue, Christian Bale is British, and did the best Batman. My issue is that he seems kind of short, and kind of a metrosexual male model type, I do not think he will be able to pull off the dual role of dorky Clark Kent and hunky Superman. He can do the hunky part but not the dorky part.
Cavill is still a much better choice than Joe Manganiello, who is best known for playing the bully in Spiderman, he is just too East Coast Jersey Shore to play a clean cut hero from the Midwest.
Eric Bana would also have been a pretty awesome Superman, in fact, Bryan Singer considered him for the SR film. It would make sense since in SR Superman is in his late 30s, and Routh looked more like a man in his early 20s. Eric Bana has the looks, the size, and the charisma to do a great Superman. Come to think of it, if they bring a new Jor-El, he should be Jor-El!!!