Henry Cavill Won't Play Superman Again - Report [Update]

[UPDATE] Warner has now released a statement following reports that Henry Cavill will no longer play Superman in the DC Universe. It reads: "While no decisions have been made regarding any upcoming Superman films, we've always had great respect for and a great relationship with Henry Cavill, and that remains unchanged." Additionally, Cavill has posted a bizarre video on his Instagram; it's anyone's guess what that means. The original story follows below.

Henry Cavill was first announced in the role of Superman back in 2011, and to date he has appeared in three DC movies--Man of Steel, Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Justice League. However, it has now been reported that he is set to leave the DC Universe and will not play the character again.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, DC was looking to include a Superman cameo in next year's Shazam. However, negotiations with Cavill broke down, and with the studio increasingly moving away from the current version of their superhero universe, the actor is unlikely to reprise the role.

THR's sources state that negotiations failed due to scheduling issues, potentially with the Netflix adaptation of The Witcher that Cavill was recently cast in. However, there is also a suggestion that he took the Witcher job after failing to reach an agreement with DC. The site also states that there is a Supergirl movie in the works, which will be an origin story featuring a "teen superheroine."

In any case, it seems that the DC Universe is undergoing yet another shake-up. While Shazam, the upcoming Aquaman, and next year's Wonder Woman 1984 are technically part of the existing universe, the Joker origin movie that is about to start production is not. In addition, Ben Affleck is not expected to play Batman again, and the standalone Batman movie that is currently in development is likely to star another actor as the Caped Crusader.

Cavill's involvement with The Witcher TV show was confirmed last week, after the actor hinted about it last month. He will play Geralt in the Netflix show, which is expected to premiere in 2020. The eight-part show will be based on the fantasy novel series written by Andrzej Sapkowski, on which the games are also based..