Henry Cavill’s Superman Feud With Warner Bros. Reportedly Fake

Yesterday a major brouhaha erupted when DC movie fans heard that Henry Cavill could be leaving his role as Superman behind. Well, after some vague, conflicting hints from Cavill and other sources close to Warner Bros., it’s now being reported that this entire issue could be malarkey!

TMZ has dropped the aggressive headline that, “HENRY CAVILL ‘SUPERMAN’ CONFLICT IS FAKE!!!” In the report, the site breaks down how this headline-grabbing implosion between Cavill and Warner Bros. is “an invented conflict.”

Allegedly, there’s been no real push-shove between Cavill and WB, as there’s no real reason to because there are no current plans for Superman’s next appearance in the DCEU, and so no real decision needs to be made about who is playing the Man of Steel. It’s stated that if/when that situation changes, Cavill “would be in play” to return as Superman.

So what’s the source of this whole blow up in the press?

This TMZ report echoes the earlier reports that Cavill and WB butted heads over a Superman cameo in the upcoming Shazam! movie, with the actor feeling he wasn’t being compensated enough for the appearance. Cavill then accepted the leading role in Netflix’s The Witcher, leading to widespread speculation that the Netflix series could pull him away from his Superman duties.

Unofficially, some industry analysts point to this being a case of “negotiating in the press,” with Cavill and his team pulling the power move of letting WB know his continued value to the DCEU franchise, by demonstrating the potential backlash to his departure. To be clear: none of that is anything more than hearsay at this point.

While there’s a clear logic to it from the perspective of Cavill and his team, it could easily be the case that trades and blogs connected dots that weren’t there between the Shazam! cameo, The Witcher, and any lack of a new Superman project. Wouldn’t be the first time the internet got a major bit of superhero movie news wrong. If we want to get really cynical, this could also be a way for DC/WB to drum up some renewed interest in the Superman movie franchise, as this report now has DC fans thirsting for what could be next from the Superman movies.

Do you think Henry Cavill is really leaving his Superman role behind? Or is this just a publicity stunt? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

Upcoming DC Extended Universe films include Aquaman on Dec. 21, Shazam! on April 5, 2019, and Wonder Woman 2 on Nov. 1, 2019.