Superman is one of the most popular and well-known superheroes, so you might be surprised that there hasn’t been much DC news about his return to the big screen. There might be some forward momentum and it’s possible that Henry Cavill might return to the role of Superman. J.J. Abrams was working on a script for a film about Black Superman with Ta-Nehisi Coates but it seems like it might instead focus on the return of Henry Cavill as Superman.
J.J. Abrams has signed on to produce various projects for Warner Bros. The merger between Warner Bros and Discovery is the reason behind his change of production team.
DC has been looking for a way to make progress on its projects, and it may have found one. An almost finished script that focuses on Superman was submitted early in the year which could be why the studios have been pushing for forward motion. This would be a strange move if Ta-Nehisi Coates were to write the script with an African American Superman in mind. Also, the movie was rumored to be siloed from the primary DCEU, so it likely wouldn’t have been written with regard to Henry Cavill’s character. Still, it is always possible to make changes as needed.
The status of the J.J. Abrams and Ta-Nehisi Coates project would not have any effect on the Black Superman that will be brought to HBO Max. Michael B. Jordan is developing the show and Val-Zod is an Earth-2 character who happens to have a different origin story from Kal-El, who will be familiar to most people.
Henry Cavill’s Superman last appeared in the 2017 Justice League. It is believed that he will reprise his role in 2021’s Zack Snyder-Directed Justice League, but with scenes already completed, there was no need for him to suit up for reshoots in the director’s cut. Since last playing Superman, Cavill has been busy in other franchises. Notably, he played Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher on Netflix. He also had a major role in various movies including Mission Impossible where he played the genius detective Sherlock Holmes.
Henry Cavill is already a busy man with many upcoming projects, but even he would be happy to play Superman again if Warner Bros. made another film.
In a recent interview, Cavill talked about what he wants to see in the future Superman films, “a Superman that’s more in line with the comics, and more idealistic.
The Superman movies have been fairly dark up to this point, but Superman is usually known for a brighter tone. Justice League did give fans a little bit more of that kind of Superman, and people would likely welcome seeing a full movie of Henry Cavill playing the more optimistic hero.
