The greatly divisive Superman adaptation of Zack Snyder’s DCEU with Henry Cavill in the lead has been a point of contention for fans of the CBM franchise. While the SnyderVerse trilogy highlights the spectrum of human and alien duality that exists in his flawed and evolving Superman, the films also bring out Cavill’s arc as one that is not a signature look for the superhero who stands for hope, light, morality, and righteousness.
As such, the transgression of the Last Son of Krypton in moments scattered throughout the DCEU epic makes Cavill simultaneously the greatest and the most hated Superman of all time. But all of it could have been avoided a decade before the conception of the SnyderVerse.
Henry Cavill Loses Superman Role to Brandon Routh
The era of Christopher Reeve and Richard Donner was definitive in the making of the Superman legacy. The actor-director duo has existed on the fringes of greatness since the 1978 film’s premiere launched the modern formula for comic book movie adaptations. The four films from the Donner-Reeve classics that ended with poor ratings in 1987’s Superman IV: The Quest For Peace then later found a comeback in 2006’s moderately-received Superman Returns.
At the time, the part of Superman was tailored to meet a criteria list that only Brandon Routh would go on to qualify for in the end. But among all the other cast try-outs for the titular superhero, two actors being considered for the part hailed from the Oscar-nominated film, The Count of Monte Cristo. Jim Caviezel and Henry Cavill were co-stars in the coveted film adaptation and were both in the race to be considered as the Superman finalist before Brandon Routh put an end to the search.
Henry Cavill Becomes the Second Choice of Hollywood
No actor in the history of the film and television (and streaming) industry has been more disadvantageous because of their timing than Henry Cavill. The actor, having appeared in an Oscar-nominated film as a teenager, then quickly spread his wings to accommodate himself into mainstream cinema. That would be a long time coming when he was finally given an opportunity as an underdog in Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel in 2013. History was rewritten soon after.
But despite the coveted actor being among the most prized and marketable A-listers now, the same was not the case a decade and a half ago. His first disappointing crash-and-burn happened during the casting call of 2006’s 007 reinvention when Cavill was turned away because he was too inexperienced, young, and green. 15 years later, the same franchise turns him away because he is too old to fit the bill. In the old DCEU, he was the perfect Superman. Now, he is nothing but flawed in his arc, too entangled in the past, too aged to be remade and reincarnated in the new DCU.
After his rise was marked by second choices and being a victim of wrong timings, Henry Cavill carved out his own fate in 2013’s DC film and its two subsequent sequels – playing the grittiest, most humanely erring, and the greatest tragically doomed Superman in live-action history. One would consider him lucky to have not gotten the part in the 2006 film that would have definitely steered him away from the 2013 reboot.
Superman Returns and Man of Steel are now available for streaming on Max.
Source: IMDb
