Spare a thought for Henry Cavill. On top of the world, he made a triumphant return in his dream role as Superman in an end-credits stinger, facing off against Dwayne Johnson‘s Black Adam and teasing a titanic tussle between the two. Cavill then announced his return to the of Clark Kent officially days later, while simultaneously, Netflix announced that — in a move which was described as unrelated to the DC developments — Cavill would be departing his leading role as Geralt of Rivia on The Witcher, to be replaced by Liam Hemsworth.
So far, so good for Cavill, right? Not so fast. While Warner Bros. was busy preparing for a Charles Roven-produced Superman film for Cavill, with writers in the process of being recruited, that plan was thrown up into the air with the hiring of James Gunn and Peter Safran as the co-heads of DC Studios.
The pair then proceeded to dismantle the DC Extended Universe, including cancelling that prospective movie with Gunn announcing he was scripting a new film about a younger Superman, which would not include Cavill. Cavill reacted magnanimously, praising the DC team and revealing his pride at having played the role.
Fans were therefore optimistic that, with DC off the table, Cavill would return to The Witcher with nothing else tying him down for a long period of time. However, Variety has now confirmed that there are no plans to alter Season 4 of The Witcher, with Hemsworth still attached and Cavill left twiddling his thumbs. His departure from the show was not believed to have anything to do with Superman, but reports stated that he had clashed with the development and writing team of the show regarding creative differences of the direction. His third and final season is yet to air, and Netflix anticipates it being highly viewed.
Despite the acrimony in the air regarding the departure of Cavill, and the hiring of Hemsworth, Netflix’s head of U.S. and Canada scripted series Peter Friedlander assured fans Hemsworth was the right choice to carry the mantle and lead the show going forward.
“Henry is an extraordinary Geralt and I think Liam will continue and also be an extraordinary Geralt,” Friedlander said. “There has been a legacy of of amazing, iconic characters where the actors have changed and we’re hugely optimistic about this. We will continue to honor the IP, the fans, the storytelling, all the way through.”
For now, Cavill has lost two roles which he had previously described as dream jobs. In the immediate future, fans should begin a prayer circle to get this man back on set quickly. Enola Holmes 3, anyone?
via Collider