Henry Cavill's Scrapped Superman Movie Would've Revealed "What Superman Is Most Afraid Of," Reveals Mission: Impossible Director

Had Henry Cavill’s Superman sequel ever happened, the DCEU would have explored the Man of Steel’s fears, according to Mission: Impossible director Christopher McQuarrie. One of the most famous aspects of the DCEU movie timeline was the many DC movies that were put in development by DC Films – the original division before the launch of DC Studios with James Gunn and Peter Safran – only for many of them to never come to fruition. When it came to Cavill’s version of Superman, there had been various plans for what to do with his take on the Man of Steel.

On the latest episode of Happy, Sad, Confused, McQuarrie was asked about the ideas he had for a Superman film with Cavill, after having worked with the British star on Mission: Impossible – Fallout. According to McQuarrie, Cavill’s Superman sequel would have explored deeper sides of the DC icon, as the Man of Steel actor had also shared some input on the direction for his take on the character:

And also, how do you do it with Superman? Henry had a take on that. I suddenly realized how these two characters had these amazing similarities, which also allowed for amazing conflict and an amazing universe-expanding resolution.

But I will tell you the first five minutes of my Superman movie, which was…imagine Pixar’s Up, a sequence with no dialogue that covered that character in the first five minutes. The first five minutes of the movie was a setup after which you knew exactly what made Superman tick, and exactly what Superman was most afraid of, and why Superman made the choices that he made, and it would have been epic. It would have been epic, in five minutes, the scale of the movie would have been absolutely extraordinary. The other thing, and I hope that anybody who watches this movie, that enjoys the end of this movie [Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning,] walking away, that’s the feeling I would want you to walk away from, because that’s really what Superman is about. It’s about hope, and it’s about being inspiring, and the joy that created.

What Christopher McQuarrie’s Superman Comments Mean For Henry Cavill’s Man Of Steel

While his movies may have had a mixed reception, Cavill’s Superman in the DCEU was someone a lot of fans always wanted to see more of throughout the franchise. Given how one of the critical remarks that was given about Cavill’s take on the DC hero was that it was a darker depiction, it makes sense why McQuarrie would want to craft a film that addressed those concerns. Allowing a Superman film with Cavill to not only lean into a more hopeful direction but also explore his inner fears would have helped flesh out Clark Kent.

Following McQuarrie’s comments, this also lines up with what Cavill shared exclusively with ScreenRant in October 2022 about his ideal version of a Man of Steel 2 movie. But as the DCEU is over, this will now just remain one of the many unproduced superhero movies in Hollywood. Whether or not McQuarrie will disclose more details in the future remains to be seen, but his latest comments definitely spark more interest about what he was trying to do with Cavill’s Superman.

Our Take On Christopher McQuarrie’s Superman Comments

Henry Cavill looking proud as Superman in Man of Steel

From everything that McQuarrie shared about his vision for a Superman movie in the DCEU, it’s disappointing that this was never able to happen, as it would have been ideal to have at least one more film with Cavill. This would have been a better outcome than having Cavill’s Superman in Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam for the post-credits scene, only for it not to lead anywhere. While the DCEU is over, a new era for Superman will begin this summer in Gunn’s DC Universe that will hopefully last for many years to come.