Henry Cavill Was Not Fired From New Superman Movie Because He Was Never Cast

DC Studio co-head James Gunn has commented on the situation surrounding actor Henry Cavill and how he will not be returning to play Superman in the next film, Superman Legacy. At an event attended by The Hollywood Reporter, Gunn said Cavill was not the right fit for the story Gunn wanted to tell with the next Superman film.

"We didn't fire Henry. Henry was never cast," Gunn said. "For me, it's about who do I want to cast as Superman and who do the filmmakers we have want to cast. And for me, for this story, it isn't Henry."

Gunn said he is a fan of Cavill's and believes he is a "great guy." But unfortunately for Cavill, Gunn said the actor is getting "dicked around by a lot of people," including people who were formerly in charge of the DC movie universe. "But this Superman is not Henry, for a number of reasons," Gunn said.

In 2022, Cavill announced that he would return to play Superman, and later confirmed he would leave The Witcher to presumably make room for this. However, not long after, it was confirmed that Cavill would not return to play Superman in the next project, which will focus on a younger Superman.

Gunn is writing Superman Legacy, a prequel film that will follow a young Clark Kent during his time as a Daily Planet reporter, according to a previous story from The Hollywood Reporter.

Cavill may yet return to play Superman once again, but not yet. "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," Gunn explained. "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."

As part of this week's DC event, it was confirmed that Superman Legacy will focus on Superman "balancing his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing."

Superman Legacy releases on July 11, 2025. Gunn is writing the movie but there is no word yet on who will direct or who will play Superman.