Why Warner Bros. Bosses Tried To Prevent Henry Cavil’s ‘Superman’ Comeback

The DCEU has been in upheaval for several years. The entire scenario was toxic, with petty grudges between past bosses at Warner Bros. and franchise actors. Since 2017’s Justice League, there has been much conjecture over actor Henry Cavill’s absence from the DCEU. The Man of Steel himself has barely been referenced in the numerous sequels that have followed.

It appears, part of the reason for that appears to be former Warner Bros. exec Toby Emmerich. According to film critic Robert Meyer Burnett, who cited a “very highly placed source,” the problems began when the studio attempted to convince Cavill to appear in 2019’s Shazam! for a quick cameo. The actor’s manager said,

“If he appeared in a cameo as Superman, that would count as one of Henry Cavill’s contracted appearances in a movie as Superman.”

This was not received well by the studio. Specifically, former Warner Bros. Pictures chairman Toby Emmerich, who is said to have responded, “Henry Cavill is now persona non grata, he’s not gonna play ball with the studio? He will never be Superman again.” Shazam! did include a Superman cameo, though it last a second and made use of a body-double. Superman walked into the scene, had no lines and was shown only from the neck down.

Up until now, there was only speculation and no official explanation for Cavill’s absence from the franchise. As audiences now know, Cavill has officially returned to the DCEU as a result of Black Adam and star Dwayne Johnson, who reportedly spent six years pushing for Cavill’s return. Moreover, a sequel to Man of Steel is reportedly in the works and is searching for writers to pen the script.

It was recently revealed that Cavill’s inclusion in Black Adam was completed just a month before the film premiered in theaters, though Johnson had been teasing an appearance by Superman for some time. We will have to wait and see what happens with the future of Black Adam and Superman. The future of the DCEU is depending on the next year’s worth of movies. Stay tuned to Thirsty for further updates.

Are excited for Cavill’s comeback as Superman? Let us know in the comments.