The last time Henry Cavill made a cameo in a major superhero release, it didn’t go too well. Just two months after announcing his return as Superman following his brief cameo at the post-credit scene of Black Adam, the actor was axed from the gig following the death of the DCEU.
Reasonably, fans were aggravated by his unexpected exit from playing Superman, especially considering his version of Clark Kent was always held back by the writing. On the bright side, it contributed to his appearance in Shawn Levy’s Deadpool & Wolverine.
Shawn Levy Approached Henry Cavill During the DC Turnaround
Following Hugh Jackman‘s decades-long legacy as Logan, the feeling of stepping into the role of Wolverine would be “an awful and intimidating feeling” for an actor per Ryan Reynolds. But if he was forced to recast, Reynolds shared that Henry Cavill would be a pretty option. And not long after the Deadpool star brought this idea to the table, things worked out extremely quickly.
Considering Cavill was also let go of the DC universe at the time, Levy recalled when they texted The Witcher star, he was immediately on board and all of it took place within 15 minutes.
The director shared (via Collider Interviews):
It was not long after the Superman DC shuffling of the deck and it just was on our minds, and literally then it was the idea, the name, a text, and an answer, all in 15 minutes
Further elaborating on Cavill’s decision to appear as Wolverine, or Cavillerine, as Reynolds would say, Levy recalled Cavill knew the brief stint would be subversive and playful. But filming the brief cameo ended up impacting the Man of Steel star’s health.
The Cigar Smoke Made Henry Cavill Sick to His Stomach
While his stint as Cavellrine was brief, for its filming, Henry Cavill “kept that cigar lit and in his mouth for the entirety of the shoot day”. Considering that unlike cigarettes, one isn’t supposed to inhale a cigar, Levy recalled the MOS star was sick to his stomach the next day, as he was inhaling the cigar smoke for 8 hours straight.
He kept that cigar lit and in his mouth for the entirety of the shoot day. I remember hearing the next day that Henry was sick to his stomach because he had been inhaling cigar smoke for eight hours straight, but never once did he waver.
In the end, it worked out well for both fans and the film, and Cavill even made a joke about shaving his mustache this time around, which is a reference to the 2017 Justice League debacle.
Deadpool & Wolverine is currently running in theatres.
