Just when it seemed like (to me at least) that the DCEU was finally getting on the right track, news broke this morning that Henry Cavill may be out as Superman. This is obviously a huge deal as the Man of Steel is, at least in theory, the central hero in any sort of shared DC Universe. So what happens now? Supposedly Supergirl will be the focus in the near future, but Superman has to come back at some point and a new actor will have to play him. On that front, Warner Bros. may already have an actor in mind and he's no stranger to the superhero realm: none other than Michael B. Jordan.
There have been whisperings of Henry Cavill's potential departure from the role for a while now, so it seems like Warner Bros. has already been planning for that eventuality and looking at replacement actors. According to Deadline, Warner Bros. will be looking to go in a different direction with Superman in the future and, to that end, has considered casting Michael B. Jordan in the role. That doesn't mean that he will be cast, and it sounds like a new Superman may be a ways off, but this gives you an idea of how much Warner Bros. is intending to shake things up.
Michael B. Jordan seems like an out of left field pick for Superman and just an instance of WB trying to capitalize on a popular actor who made a splash in another superhero movie, but the actor and the studio do have an existing relationship. It was only earlier this week that it was announced that Michael B. Jordan was partnering with Warner Bros. parent company, WarnerMedia, to launch a new diversity and inclusion initiative. So Warner Bros. clearly likes working with Michael B. Jordan, and given his growing star power, it (at least in some ways) makes sense to want an actor like him to take on the role of DC's most powerful hero.
This is all still developing, and maybe things change and Henry Cavill stays Superman. Or maybe Warner Bros. goes in a different direction than Michael B. Jordan for the recasting. Personally, while Michael B. Jordan is a great actor with the physique for it and charisma to spare, I don't see him as Superman. The only actor I really want to see get a new Superman movie at this point is Henry Cavill, but that's looking unlikely.
The real trick with recasting Superman at all is how does it work. If the character stayed dead in Justice League, then he could have been brought back as a different actor and the recasting could have kind of been worked into the story, but now who knows. Although if the DCEU as we know it is over, then maybe WB should just do solo hero films from now on and it won't matter quite as much when characters are recast.
I'm guessing that this is just the first of many names that will come up in the near future to replace Henry Cavill as Kal-El. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend and we'll keep you updated on this story as it develops. For now, head over to our guide for all the latest in the DCEU, and also check out the release calendar to see all the biggest movies still to come this year.
