Henry Cavill: The Only Superman We Need

Over the summer, there has been the back and forth whether Warner Bros. was going in another direction with both Batman and Superman. The rumors were flying that Ben Affleck was out, then he was back out, then he was in rehab and was definitely out. Henry Cavill on the other hand was never rumored to be out as Superman until WB announced a stand alone Supergirl film. There’s been the back and forth of the studio and actor about contract disputes. Then there was the almost confirmation and shooting down on his involvement with DC films going forward. While the truth is still up in the air, one thing is for sure. If Henry Cavill exits as Superman WB and DC films are dead in the water.

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First comes the look. Cavill looks like Clark Kent came to life right off the page. He’s got the size and build to look like a superhero. He’s got the clean-cut All-American boy down to a science. To top it off, he plays every bit of the character 100% down to a tee. When it comes to Clark Kent and Superman there’s no other actor out who looks more the part. He’s got the tough serious look as well as the soft and caring demeanor.

Then of course there’s the character himself. While the DCEU has been a mess in many people’s minds, Superman has been the strongest force on-screen. Judge the films as you will but Cavill has played the character exactly as he’s been asked. He’s been the soft-spoken outcast alien who doesn’t fit in a fearful society. He’s been the kind loving counterpart to Lois Lane. He’s been the dark, twisted, and threatening resurrection of his former self. He even returned in Justice League to the more traditional form fans have grown to love since the character’s creation. Henry Cavill has been the character as written on the scripts and doesn’t deserve the negative backlash from critics and fans.

Finally, there’s the case of who’s going to replace him? Sure, you can come up with a list of names of your favorite actors or even some that fit close to the mold. However, when it all comes down to it, are we really ready to shoehorn a whole new actor into an already established universe? DC and Warner Bros have no plans to reboot the films and instead are choosing to go forward with a Wonder Woman sequel, Aquaman set to release a stand alone later this year, and still plans for a Flash film down the road. If WB goes down that road and replaces Henry Cavill as Superman it’ll be too strange to have 75% of the cast be the same while changing a few others. With Superman alive and well in the current state of films, it would be too odd to write him out of the stories. Warner Bros. can save their universe if they just bite the bullet and push forward. There’s so much meat left on the bone with Cavill’s Superman, but the studio is doing too much to repair damage.[CMRickTwitter]