Henry Cavill Out as Superman Amid Warner Bros.' DC Universe Shake-Up

[STARMAN]

See I don't think putting a better more experienced actor would make a difference. If you display personality you're more likely to be considered charismatic. This version has a muted personality and thus comes off wooden.

 

[JannTosh]

No argument there. MoS would have been a vastly different movie with only a few tweaks. Somebody could have reined in Snyder's worst instincts.

Lessen the destruction porn, show Superman saving people, alter Jonathan Kent's character, get rid of the heavy handed Christ parallels, remove the neck snap... stuff like that.

Pretty sure doing all of that would have taken the rather mediocre box office haul of $668 million up to a good $800 - $900 million. That would have got us a Man Of Steel 2, and would have avoided the garbage we've had since.

Jonathan Kent character changed and a few more character development scenes sure. Dont need to see more saving people. Thought there was plenty

 

[2kt09]

Yeah, if anything more spectacle action = more $$
the 3 act brawl has since evolved into 5 or 6 or 7
literally the only reason I can see why folks would be gunning for McQuarrie or Vaughn

 

[STARMAN]

Action doesn't always equal exciting. I was enthralled with the battle of Smallville because we hadn't seen Superman slugging it out on the big screen in forever and MOS had build up tension to the Smallville fight like an old western. The rest of the third act battles bored me, actually taking me out of the movie. For me it came off as noise. Not excitement.

 

[2kt09]

Action doesn't always equal exciting. I was enthralled with the battle of Smallville because we hadn't seen Superman slugging it out on the big screen in forever and MOS had build up tension to the Smallville fight like an old western. The rest of the third act battles bored me, actually taking me out of the movie. For me it came off as noise. Not excitement.

For sure, but at the end of the day, we're talking about a subgenre within a larger genre and it has to meet the demands of that larger genre.

 

[GreenKToo]

Honestly, you could have had actors like a Brad Pitt or Leonardo DiCaprio in the role and the outcome would have been the same.
Snyder filmed it exactly like he wanted, which was to have a standoffish, godlike superman, that isn't even sure he wants to be superman.
Sure, the performance may have been better with a more experienced actor but the end result would have been the same.
I'll wager that if a Ron Howard or JJ abrams had made MoS with cavill ( made in the way they wanted ) MoS 2 would have been out by now.

 

[Rorschach2012]

JJ Abrams really would’ve been the perfect guy for the job if he could’ve dialed back his original script a bit, and stayed closer to the comics

 

[FunkMiller]

JJ Abrams really would’ve been the perfect guy for the job if he could’ve dialed back his original script a bit, and stayed closer to the comics

Unfortunately, the director who probably has the talent, experience, box office clout, right attitude, and right directorial style for a full blooded, classic interpretation of Superman, with all the feel good elements married with the drama... is one Mr Steven Spielberg.

 

[MaceB]

Honestly, you could have had actors like a Brad Pitt or Leonardo DiCaprio in the role and the outcome would have been the same.
Snyder filmed it exactly like he wanted, which was to have a standoffish, godlike superman, that isn't even sure he wants to be superman.

I agree. Cavill has the tools - but his portrayal was directed in a way that made it difficult to connect emotionally with him, from start to finish basically. Such a flippin shame. Imagine if someone would have been able to reign Snyder in, and fix the MOS 3rd act..... there wouldn't have been a backlash, Snyder and Cavill would have had more license in the sequel, we would have opened with Superman being thought of as a hero.... it could have been really great. One mistake created a ripple effect that essentially ruined 3 movies... not to mention Snyder's career.

 

[JannTosh]

I love the action climax in man of Steel and the villains



I agree there should have been a few more development scenes for Clark though

 

[Primal Slayer]

So is this confirmed now or are we still at a crossroads?

 

[Boy Scout]

I don’t think THR has printed a retraction, so as far as I’m concerned, Cavill is out.

 

[SiegePerilous]

See I don't think putting a better more experienced actor would make a difference. If you display personality you're more likely to be considered charismatic. This version has a muted personality and thus comes off wooden.

I think Cavill has limited range as an actor, but I think what many think of as the iconic Superman personality definitely falls within said range. He showed signs of it in JL, it was just surrounded by crap and covered in bad CGI lips, in addition to just not having much screen time. With the right talent and guidance behind the camera, I think he'd have the performance in him. Unfortunately, he had Snyder, and I say that as someone who still mostly likes MOS. Worse, he had the people ABOVE Snyder.

Gadot similarly has range that happens to fit the character she's playing, but her situation was different in that BvS she got to be cool and mysterious which is automatically more fun than the other two, and of course Jenkins did the lion's share of guiding the character and provided the working relationship needed to bring out the best in Gadot and provide her more experience as an actress. I don't think Cavill would be wooden in a movie directed by Jenkins or somebody similar, because Jenkins didn't go with a direction that could easily fall into the trap of making her character wooden.

 

[MaceB]

In Gadot's Wonder Woman and Cavill's Superman, we have a glimpse of two emotional extremes. Gadot's Wonder Woman is all heart - she wears her feelings for others on her sleeve. Cavil's Superman is entirely different. Was there one moment of open, honest vulnerability in Cavill? His Superman broods, no doubt, but was there ever a moment where Clark broke down? Where we got to see the man behind the tough outer shell? I don't think so. Superman comes across as a fragile young man, afraid to show the world who he is. Afraid to let anyone else in. While that works for the character, I think they could have afforded the audience a few more glimpses at the character's emotional core.

Snyder seems bad at that. His films come off as emotionally withdrawn.

 

[Deck Rickard]

In Gadot's Wonder Woman and Cavill's Superman, we have a glimpse of two emotional extremes. Gadot's Wonder Woman is all heart - she wears her feelings for others on her sleeve. Cavil's Superman is entirely different. Was there one moment of open, honest vulnerability in Cavill? His Superman broods, no doubt, but was there ever a moment where Clark broke down? Where we got to see the man behind the tough outer shell? I don't think so. Superman comes across as a fragile young man, afraid to show the world who he is. Afraid to let anyone else in. While that works for the character, I think they could have afforded the audience a few more glimpses at the character's emotional core.

Snyder seems bad at that. His films come off as emotionally withdrawn.

I would argue that Cavill showed that emotional breakdown in the Pa Kent death scene, as well as the scene with Lois at the grave in which he tells her about it. Unfortunately, Pa Kent's death is such a terrible scene overall that it failed anyway. The idea of Superman letting his father die is just a terrible, terrible idea. I gather that Snyder and Goyer were thinking, "Hmmm... how can we top the scene in Superman '78? You know, the one where he's like, 'All these powers, and I couldn't even save him?' I got it! Let's have his father actually tell him to let him die and he does it! That'll tug at the heart strings!" Ugh.

 

[thebatfan5194]

Frustrating thing about MoS is that the pieces were there to have an awesome Superman movie, a few tweaks here and there and it would have been near perfect and definitely fared better with critics/audiences alike.

 

[Deck Rickard]

Totally agree. They were so close. But it is what it is.

(Sigh)

What might have been.

 

[Batmannerism]

See I don't think putting a better more experienced actor would make a difference. If you display personality you're more likely to be considered charismatic. This version has a muted personality and thus comes off wooden.

Agreed. Back in 1977 a relatively unknown actor named Christopher Reeve was cast as Superman.....the rest is history. The way the character was written back then was very engaging and likeable and Reeve played those aspects to perfection.

Cavill needed a better characterisation of Superman to work with and better direction.

 

[Deck Rickard]

Yeah. Cavill's not a bad actor. He did what he was asked to. Which, unfortunately, was brood silently most of the time.

 

[WhoMani]

I actually enjoyed Man of Steel and it's a decent movie but the problem I had with it is that it took itself way too seriously. Cavill's Superman in Man of Steel never inspired hope and I never really felt any warmth from the character.

 

[Batmannerism]

Yeah. Cavill's not a bad actor. He did what he was asked to. Which, unfortunately, was brood silently most of the time.

IMO Snyder's Superman was still wayyyy better than Singer's Superman, now that's some serious brooding !

 

[Deck Rickard]

IMO Snyder's Superman was still wayyyy better than Singer's Superman, now that's some serious brooding !

Oh totally. SR was awful. I mean yeah, Superman saved a lot of people and that's great, but Routh was like a mute in that movie, waaaaay more so than Cavill. He was inexperienced as an actor and it REALLY showed. People give Cavill crap about his acting but Routh felt like a stand-in for a real actor.

To be fair to Routh, the script didn't do him any favors. Though it seemed like they wrote it in such a way where Superman/Clark didn't really have to talk much. Routh has improved a lot as an actor though. Which is kind of a shame. I think if he was cast as Superman NOW, he'd do a great job. But back then? Ugh.

 

[thebatfan5194]

Superman: For All Seasons is the type of characterization I’d like to see going forward.

 

[Rorschach2012]

Sorry but I think Routh is a better actor than Cavill. It’s a shame he didn’t get to play Superman again, he’s only gotten better

I bet Singer’s sequel with Brainiac would’ve been better than MOS.

So stupid that they used General Zod AGAIN for MOS. I would’ve much rather seen Brainiac or Lex paired up with Brainiac or Metallo

Big mistake. General Zod is boring unless Terrence Stamp plays him

 

[Deck Rickard]

I agree that Zod is boring but from what I've read about that SR sequel, it sounds like it would have been awful.

Anyway, if they are recasting, I hope it happens soon and they get a movie into production. I feel like recasting Superman may be the only way a Superman film gets off the ground any time soon. Not because Cavill is bad but because the character needs a fresh start after the previous efforts failed. If so, I really like Ben Walker for the role. I know he's been suggested hundreds of times but he'd be a great choice.