Henry Cavill’s Superman exit gets new details, and the situation was actually even worse than it seemed. The Man of Steel actor had not been in any DC movies since 2017’s Justice League when he returned for a cameo in 2022’s Black Adam, which was meant to serve as a new start for his Superman in the DCEU movie slate.

However, soon after Cavill’s Superman returned in Black Adam and the actor announced that he was coming back for more, it was revealed that new DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran had other plans in mind. Gunn’s Superman movie cast David Corenswet in the тιтle role, with the actor recently debuting to critical and fan acclaim.

On the Happy Sad Confused podcast, James Gunn addressed Henry Cavill’s Superman exit and how he already had his Superman movie in the works when the actor’s return after Black Adam was announced.

According to Gunn, he was surprised by the fact that Cavill was announced to return as Superman on the day he and Safran closed their deals to run DC, as he knew his Superman movie would conflict with that. Additionally, Gunn commented on how he talked with Cavill about a new DCU role for him and would love for it to happen.

Check out the full exchange below:

“James Gunn: It’s terrible… We were dealing with trying to figure out if we could take the job at DC Studios, and we’re talking to [Warner Bros. Discovery CEO] David Zaslav and all the legal people there and figuring out what our deals would be. And the day our deal closed, all the sudden, they were announcing that Henry was back, and I’m like, ‘What’s going on? We know what the plan is. The plan was to come in and do Superman.’ It was really unfair to him and was a total bummer.

But there was a vacuum at the time, and a lot of people were…they wanted to take on what they wanted to do with DC, and they were trying to force their way in. This was never a part of the equation for David Zaslav.

So, yeah, we came in and that was really unfortunate. This poor guy. So, Peter [Safran] and I [felt] the right thing to do was to sit down and talk to him. We sat down and we talked to him. He was an absolute gentleman, a great guy about it. He said, ‘The only thing I ask is that I’m able to reveal it myself as opposed to coming from you guys.’

Interviewer: Would it be too confusing to cast him in your DC Universe going forward?

James Gunn: No. As another character? Absolutely not. I talked to him about it on that day. Yeah, I would love to put Henry in something.”

What James Gunn’s Henry Cavill Superman Comments Mean

The DCEU Actor Was Never Going To Stay On As The Man Of Steel

Based on James Gunn’s new comments, it seems like Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav never planned for Henry Cavill to fully return as Superman despite what happened in Black Adam. As such, the actor and the fans’ celebration of his possible future when he came back was never going to lead to more appearances in DC’s future movies.

While Gunn’s story regarding Cavill’s Superman exit is disappointing, it rings true to the state DC was in at the time. After director Zack Snyder left Justice League, the DCEU lacked a singular vision guiding its projects. Gunn even commented on how different people were trying to force their plans onto DC. A reboot seemed like the best fresh start.

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Cavill might no longer be Superman, but Gunn’s new comments bring hope that he could find his way back to DC. Like DCEU Aquaman star Jason Momoa, now set to play Lobo in 2026’s Supergirl, Cavill could take on another character. Gunn once again says he talked to Cavill about that, and the door is open for that to happen.

Our Take On James Gunn’s Henry Cavill Superman Comments

After learning the full story, I think Henry Cavill’s Superman exit could and should have been handled much better. DC Studios was already on the way with Gunn and Peter Safran, so there was no need to announce Cavill’s return if it was never leading anywhere. That said, I’m glad Gunn wants Cavill in the DCU, even if not as Superman.

Source: Happy Sad Confused /YouTube