While new DC studio heads James Gunn and Peter Safran haven't revealed their full plan, both James and Henry Cavill have confirmed that he won't reprise the role of Superman.

After having only recently left Netflix's The Witcher and announced his return to the big S. Ouch.

Henry:

It’s sad news, everyone. I will, after all, not be returning as Superman. After being told by the studio to announce my return back in October, prior to their hire, this news isn’t the easiest, but that’s life.

I respect that James and Peter have a universe to build. I wish them and all involved with the new universe the best of luck, and the happiest of fortunes.

James:

Peter & I have a DC slate ready to go, which we couldn’t be more over-the-moon about; we’ll be able to share some exciting information about our first projects at the beginning of the new year.

Among those on the slate is Superman. In the initial stages, our story will be focusing on an earlier part of Superman’s life, so the character will not be played by Henry Cavill. But we just had a great meeting with Henry and we’re big fans and we talked about a number of exciting possibilities to work together in the future.

Wouldn't be first time an actor has played different roles in a superhero universe.

Chris Evans was first The Fantastic Four's and later Captain America.

Ryan Reynolds first played Hanibal King in Blade Trinity and later Deadpool.

Both later characters are among the most popular in the Marvel franchise.

Superman is the pinnacle of the DC universe so anything would be a downgrade, but is also arguably one of the least interesting characters for having been the subject of numerous films and series.

Preceding Superman Brandon Routh also went on to play another DC character, The Atom, in Arrow and other lower budget DC series, where he faded into such obscurity that he did not immediately come to mind when thinking of previous actors to play multiple superhero roles.

We are curious to see where Henry lands.

[ Main Image: Man of Steel - Henry Cavill. Credit: Warner Bros. via IMDb.com. ]

References

Donnelly, Matt (December 14, 2022). James Gunn Writing New ‘Superman’ Film; Henry Cavill Will Not Return, but Eyed to Play Different DC Character. Variety.