Exclusive: Henry Cavill Is Battling Chris Hemsworth To Be The Next He-Man
Henry Cavill wants to be the next He-man, and he's willing to do what it takes to make that happen.
This article is more than 2 years old
Anyone looking at Henry Cavill’s career path can see that he’s being strategic in the roles he chooses. While he’d worked as an actor before joining the DC Extended Universe in Man of Steel, it was joining the franchise that earned him major paychecks and a dedicated audience. Since the 2013 film, he’s chosen to grow his career with franchises. We’ve seen this in his roles for Mission: Impossible – Fallout, The Witcher, Enola Holmes, and rebooting Highlander. Now, one of our trusted and proven sources has shared that Henry Cavill is looking to establish a new franchise, and he’s willing to fight a heavy-weight player to get the part.
Our source is saying that Sony wants to sign Chris Hemsworth on as He-Man for their upcoming film. Henry Cavill has heard about this, but he wants the opportunity to try out for himself. So, Cavill is pushing to get the role, while discussions with Chris Hemsworth are in progress. Our source also added that Henry Cavill is working out to get even bigger and more ripped for his next projects, which makes a lot of sense if he wants to be the star of He-Man.
He-Man is a movie that Sony has been working on for a very long time. They seem dedicated to bringing this franchise back around. They’ve kept the project alive through a decade of writers with new scripts and new directors. Finally, they had cast their He-Man for their long-planned reboot with Noah Centineo. Before we knew about COVID-19, they had scheduled a 2021 release date. The project hit another delay due to the pandemic, and a month ago, they lost their lead actor. That would make it seem like the project may be dead in the water again, but now Sony has Henry Cavill and Chris Hemsworth on the line.
It’s not surprising that Cavill has heard about Sony wanting Hemsworth for the part. A couple of weeks ago, we heard a rumor that Sony wanted Hemsworth to lift the Sword of Power. Henry Cavill must be hearing the same news. While Sony had cast an actor that was younger and lesser-known the first time around, both Henry Cavill and Chris Hemsworth make interesting prospects for the He-Man role.
One area where the two will face off is in how they look for the part. He-Man is of course a very buff character. Due to his time as Thor, Chris Hemsworth looks the part. As Cavill is frequently topless in The Witcher, and has flexed his abs and biceps plenty as Superman, we know that Henry Cavill is fit, but doesn’t look as much like the He-Man cut-out as Hemsworth does. How heavy will that concern be in the studio’s decision-making process? The role of He-Man will require some beefing up on Cavill’s part, but according to our insider, he’s already prepared for that. This may be a topic on the table when discussing the possibility for Cavill, but it’s just one piece of the picture Sony will have to decide on.
One part that’s likely in Henry Cavill’s favor for the role is his earnestness. If he is willing to put out there that he strongly wants the role, the studio may weigh that in his favor. It’s better to have a star willing to go the extra mile for a project they desperately want to be a part of.
What is it that makes Henry Cavill want this particular role? Perhaps one element is that he believes in the existing audience for this franchise. He-Man is a superhero, also known as Prince Adam. The character began as a toy for Mattel. While the 1987 movie was a flop starring Dolph Lundgren, one that dropped Mattel’s toy sales, the franchise has stayed alive and well. There was a cartoon in the 1980s that grew popular. Soon, Netflix will be releasing Kevin Smith’s Masters of the Universe: Revelations, an animated series that continues the story of the cartoon from the 80s. While that is an unrelated project to what Henry Cavill is looking to sign on for, it shows that there remains an interest in this franchise. That’s the kind of spark needed to create something huge.
Henry Cavill has proven that he can star in a franchise from the very beginning with his role on The Witcher. That’s proven to be one of Netflix’s biggest hits. Now, it’s time for him to get a major film franchise off the ground on his own. He’s already doing that with Highlander soon, but clearly, Cavill is hungry to grow his career as strong as he can. This is his moment for starting franchises and building his household name. If Sony is looking to hire a well-established name like Chris Hemsworth, then that suggests they’re willing to put a major marketing budget behind the project. That sounds like all Cavill needs to better establish himself as a major franchise player.
