Summary
- Henry Cavill’s love of gaming almost caused him to miss the call from director Zack Snyder, informing him that he got the role as Superman. He was playing World of Warcraft at the time.
- Cavill didn’t know he had been chosen for the role until the morning of the announcement. The casting process was kept so secretive that even his agents were unaware of his selection.
- Cavill solely used comics as inspiration for his portrayal of Superman, focusing on titles such as “The Death of Superman” and “Superman: Red Son” to shape his performance.
The Superman career of Henry Cavill has had some curious happenings surrounding it that might take the average fan by surprise. Cavill’s Superman already created big red boots to fill for the next actor to step up to the plate. Though Zack Snyder and the DCEU may have taken the character in a divisive direction, Henry Cavill’s inspiring performance as Superman was a bright spot in the universe’s history.
It is likely that Henry Cavill’s Superman will go down in history as one of Superman’s most iconic depictions, having raised a new generation of fans off of the universe spawned from Man of Steel. But the British actor’s tenure as the character has had some quirky moments not betrayed by his confident on-screen presence.
10 Henry Cavill Almost Missed The Call From Zack Snyder Because Of World Of Warcraft
Cavill’s identity as a gamer has gone from open secret to common knowledge in the industry. From his YouTube videos building a gaming PC to his eager portrayal of Geralt of Rivia in Netflix’s The Witcher series, his love of gaming and gaming culture is well-documented. This love runs so deep, in fact, that Cavill missed Zack Snyder’s call telling him he got the role as Superman because he was playing World of Warcraft at the time.
Not wanting to be disturbed during a key moment of a dungeon crawl, Henry Cavill recalled his phone going off, only looking at the last moment to see Zack Snyder’s name fade from the screen. Luckily, he was able to call back quickly enough to receive the good news.
9 Henry Cavill Didn’t Know He Got The Role Until Hours Before The Announcement
As if nearly missing the call congratulating him on getting the iconic role wasn’t enough, Henry Cavill’s casting as Superman was even more stressful. The entire casting process was so secretive that neither Cavill nor his agents knew he had been chosen for Superman until the morning of the announcement.
Kept closely under wraps, Cavill knew he was in the final running early January after he had gotten a callback to meet Zack Snyder face-to-face. Beating out competitors such as Matthew Goode, Joe Magianello and Armie Hammer, Cavill only knew he had the role secured when Snynder’s faithful phone call came in the same morning of the announcement. The whole decision was kept so closely under wraps, Cavill even found out sooner than some Warner executives.
8 Henry Cavill Solely Used Comics As Inspiration
When being cast in a role as iconic as Superman, it’s not uncommon for actors to do some heavy research on their character to draw inspiration from. For a being as ubiquitous as Superman, this left Henry Cavill with a wide range of media to choose from. Cavill opted to focus only on the comics, not wanting his own big-screen version of Kal-El to be emulating those that had come before him.
For primary resources, Henry Cavill citedThe Death of Superman (1992), The Return of Superman (1993), Superman: Red Son (2003) and Superman/Batman: The Search for Kryptonite (2008). These books, according to Cavill, make up the DNA of his Superman performance.
7 Henry Cavill’s Nephew’s School Didn’t Believe His Uncle Was Superman
Kids in school are known for making outrageous claims about famous relatives, but in the case of Henry Cavill’s nephew, the hard-to-believe story was actually true. The story goes that one of Cavill’s many nephews, Thomas, brought up his Uncle being Superman at his school’s career-day. Needless to say, his classmates and teachers were skeptical, to say the least.
Thomas wound up getting in trouble, his teacher pulling aside the boy’s mother to encourage her not to encourage her son to lie. Unfortunately for them, he was very much telling the truth, as Thomas’ mother had to assure his school.
6 Henry Cavill Was Almost Cast As Superman In Superman Returns
Previous to Cavill’s debut performance as Superman in 2013’s Man of Steel, the most recent Superman put to the big screen had been Brandon Routh in 2006’s Superman Returns. But Henry Cavill was also in the running for the role, almost making his Superman debut seven years earlier.
Originally, the film was slated to be directed by McG, who had been eyeing Cavill for the role. However, the studio eventually replaced McG with director Bryan Singer, who opted to instead use Routh due to his similar looks to Christopher Reeve, as the film served as a requel of Reeve’s own film, Superman II. This contributed to a string of second-place picks for iconic roles for Cavill, earning him the nickname “the unluckiest man in Hollywood”.
5 Henry Cavill Screentested For Superman At Only 21 Years Old
Shockingly, Cavill’s snub for Superman Returns wasn’t even his first brush with playing the Kryptonian hero on-screen. At only 21 years old, Cavill screen-tested a Superman suit for the ill-fated film Superman Flyby in 2004.
From the mind of J.J. Abrams, Superman Flyby would’ve been the start of a new Superman trilogy, including a civil war on planet Krypton and Lex Luthor as an unhinged C.I.A. agent. Sadly, the film was scrapped, and only a few ideas were rolled into Superman Returns by Warner Brothers. Once again, the role of Superman was just outside of Henry Cavill’s grasp.
4 Henry Cavill Is The Only Superman To Have An Eight-Pack
Henry Cavill’s physique as Superman is one of the most impressive put to screen in the modern era, let alone among those who had played Superman. But learning the specifics of his regiment and what he was able to accomplish with his training only makes his shirtless scenes even more impressive. Cavill himself had to debunk rumors that his body fat percentage got as low as 3%.
What Henry is proud of, however, is his relatively rare eight-pack abs he was able to first cultivate in 2011’s Immortals, bringing it back to the screen in Man of Steel. This is made possible through a combination of careful training and genetic luck.
As an Englishman, Henry Cavill’s likelihood of developing any kind of fandom for American Football might seem astronomically low. Yet that’s exactly what happened thanks to his love for Superman’s humble origins as Clark Kent.
Cavill revealed himself as a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs, developing a taste for American Football during his time in the U.S. thanks to his love of rugby. When it came to picking a team to root for, he rationalized the Kansas City Chiefs as his franchise of choice by figuring it’s the team Superman would support, being a farm boy from Kansas. The choice seemed very personal, Cavill stating that Superman was as much of a constant in his life as any true football fans’ home team.
2 Henry Cavill Owns A Dog Named After Superman
Henry Cavill’s love for his character has bled into his personal life in more ways than one. In 2011, before Man of Steel even graced theaters, Cavill adopted an American Akita puppy, naming it Kal, a clear homage to Kal-El being Superman’s birth name. As a therapy dog, Kal has helped Henry Cavill navigate the stresses of stardom.
Much like Superman’s faithful canine, Krypto, Kal always seems to be at Henry’s side, so much so that he created an Instagram just to share pictures with fans. Kal has even crossed over into other worlds of Cavill’s work, appearing as an Easter egg in The Witcher 3.
1 Henry Cavill Has Struggled With Superman’s American Accent
As the first English actor to play Superman, getting the accent down was of upmost importance for Henry Cavill considering how iconic of a figure in American culture the hero is. Though he sounds very natural in the DCEU’s films, it hasn’t always been easy for Cavill to keep a foot on either side of the pond.
Luckily, Henry Cavill had worked in American accents prior to Man of Steel. But he has since gone on record stating it was sometimes difficult for him to turn his American accent “off” after a day on set speaking in it. Even his fiancée wound up hearing Cavill’s voice for Superman off the clock – an experience some DCEU fans might consider a privilege.
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