James Gunn is shedding light on the poignant moment when he had to inform Henry Cavill that his journey as Superman was not to continue. During a recent guest appearance on the 'Happy Sad Confused' podcast hosted by Josh Horowitz, the helmsman of DC Studios delved into the perplexing sequence of events that saw Cavill initially announce his return to the iconic role, only to reveal approximately two months later that he would not be progressing in Gunn's superhero realm.
"We were in the midst of negotiations to take the reigns at DC Studios, conversing with David Zaslav and the legal team, sorting out our contracts," Gunn recounted. "And on the very day our deal was finalized, out of the blue, they were proclaiming that Henry was back."
Gunn admitted to being blindsided by the announcement. "I was like, what's happening here? We knew the plan, the plan was to embark on a new 'Superman' film," he said, referring to the upcoming 2025 movie where David Corenswet will don the mantle. "It was truly unfortunate. I felt for the guy. So, Peter [Safran] and I knew the decent thing to do was to sit down with Henry and have a heart-to-heart with him."
Describing the moment of breaking the news to Cavill, the writer-director of 'Guardians of the Galaxy' said, "It was incredibly unfair to him and a complete downer." He further elaborated that external forces were "intent on pursuing their own agenda at DC and were trying to impose their will, which was never part of our blueprint."
Despite not reprising his role as the lead in Gunn's 'Superman', Cavill and Corenswet did communicate prior to the latter stepping into the shoes of the Man of Steel. "I had the honor of exchanging letters with two former Supermans, Henry Cavill and Tyler Hoechlin. Both, intriguingly, said in their unique ways, 'I won't offer you any advice,'" Corenswet shared at the London premiere of the film. "They were incredibly supportive and we had a wonderful correspondence. I'm eager to meet them one day; it would be fantastic to all be in a room together."
Towards the end of their discussion about Cavill, host Horowitz inquired if it would be "too bewildering" to recast the actor in a different role in Gunn's DC Universe. To this, Gunn responded, "No, as another character? Absolutely not. I spoke to him about it that very day. I would love to feature Henry in something else."
