It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s likely not Henry Cavill. That’s right, the actor who played Superman in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU)’s Man of Steel, Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Justice League is now reportedly stepping down from the role after negotiations broke down for a Shazam! cameo.
Cavill joins Ben Affleck, who played Batman, in leaving the cinematic franchise. Contract negotiations often fall apart, as we’ve seen with Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth not to long ago, but the door seems to be shutting on the Superman part of the franchise. Still, it doesn’t seem like there’s a lot of ill will from the studio towards the actor.
“While no decisions have been made regarding any upcoming Superman films, we’ve always had great respect for and a great relationship with Henry Cavill, and that remains unchanged,” reads a statement from a Warner Bros. spokesperson that The Hollywood Reporter published.
That’s not to say the the DCEU is totally eradicated if Cavill never dons the iconic cape again. The aforementioned Shazam! movie is still on track, as well as the highly anticipated Wonder Woman 2, a movie with the Flash, and a stand-aline Batman film from Matt Reeves. Warner Bros. will now be focusing an origin film for Supergirl, not surprising given how popular the show is. And of course, there’s Aquaman coming out in December of this year, though the hype around that has died down a lot since the first trailer came out.
Cavill will be starring as Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher on Netflix, based on the popular video game. He’s also just finished a thriller called Nomis about the chase of an online predator. And with his popularity in the latest Mission Impossible film, it’s unlikely that he’ll be without work for a long while.
