It has been over 5 years since audiences have seen Henry Cavill take on the role of Superman in a new DC Extended Universe (DCEU) film. While he did appear in Zack Snyder’s Justice League in 2021, most of his scenes were shot back in 2016 during initial filming. Despite it being a while since we’ve seen him as Superman, he is still very much the DCEU’s superman. Superman has not yet been recast, and Cavill himself has indicated an interest in reprising the role.
Cavill’s appearance in the DCEU is especially important to fans, considering he was the star who launched the media franchise. The DCEU kicked off in 2013 with the release of Man of Steel in which Cavill debuted his Superman. While the film received mixed reviews, many praised Cavill’s unique, darker take on the iconic hero. Cavill returned to the DCEU alongside Ben Affleck in the 2016 film, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. He later returned in Justice League in 2017, as well as the film’s director’s cut, Zack Snyder’s Justice League. His return was also teased in Shazam! though Cavill ultimately did not appear in the film.
Now, with the release of Black Adam, many are wondering if the rumors are true. Does Henry Cavill make his return as Superman in the movie? Black Adam sees Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson portraying Black Adam for the anti-hero’s live-action debut. The film sees Black Adam awakening after a 5,000-year imprisonment and using the power of the gods, granted to him by the Wizard Shazam, to bring his unique form of justice to the world.
Cavill appears in Black Adam post-credits scene
Black Adam premiered on October 21, 2022, and confirmed that previous leaks were legit, as Cavill does show up in the post-credit scene. The scene starts with Black Adam brooding in Kahndaq when US government official Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) sends a drone to communicate with him. Waller is the one who first identified him as a threat and contacted the JSA to confront him. She assures him that she won’t meddle in his affairs anymore, but he has to stay in Kahndaq.
Of course, this doesn’t sit well with Black Adam. After all, why should he listen to a warning from Waller when no one on the planet can stop him? It seems Waller was already prepared for this response as she tells Black Adam that she has connections from other planets, too. That is when Cavill swoops in wearing his Superman uniform for the first time since 2017. He tells Black Adam, “We should talk” and the scene ends.
While it was a very brief cameo, it has a lot of connotations for the DCEU. The biggest one is that Man of Steel 2 is reportedly back in development and will focus on a Superman vs. Black Adam storyline. Additionally, if Superman is here to stay, we could even eventually see a Justice League 2. What we know for sure is Cavill’s Superman is back and there are few limits to what the DCEU can do with him.
When did we first hear about Superman in Black Adam?
Originally, Cavill had not been confirmed to be appearing in Black Adam. However, an alleged leaker had claimed that Cavill would, indeed, appear in Black Adam before the film’s release. As reported by Dexerto, the rumors started with Twitter user @MyTimeToShineH. The Twitter user largely shares and retweets major updates within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and DCEU. However, they have claimed to have insider knowledge, such as that MODOK will appear in Ant-Man 3 and that Cavill is in Black Adam. Check out their Tweet below regarding Cavill in Black Adam:
The Twitter user also shared a Tweet of what Cavill’s “classic” Superman suit might look like. As for the “Williams score,” they seem to be referencing Superman’s main theme, composed by John Williams for the 1978 film, Superman.
Other popular insiders are also resharing and backing up the rumor of Cavill appearing in Black Adam.
While the rumor had gained momentum amongst fans and insiders, it hadn’t been officially confirmed before the movie’s debut, as they tried to keep things under wraps. However, the details about Superman’s suit and Williams’ iconic Superman theme song made it harder to believe the rumors were wholly made up.
Johnson previously teased a Cavill cameo in Black Adam
On October 17, 2022, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Johnson had all but openly confirmed that Cavill would appear in Black Adam. The news came shortly after the post-credits scene of Black Adam was allegedly leaked and further fueled speculation of Cavill’s appearance. Meanwhile, Johnson himself had been hyping up a “major cameo.” Johnson confirmed the cameo would occur in the post-credit scene and stated, “Something happens, and people are gonna freak out. Fans have been kind of asking this for a long time.”
The Hollywood Reporter also delved into how this cameo came about and, it turns out, Johnson was at the center of it. This isn’t surprising as Johnson has gone so far as to promise fans that a Black Adam vs. Superman film will happen. When Johnson first proposed the idea of a Superman cameo, though, it was allegedly shot down by then-head of DC films Walter Hamada, who was more interested in the Black Superman reboot from writer Ta-Nehisi Coates. Hamada is no longer a part of Warner Bros.
Johnson, at the time, went around Hamada and approached Warner Bros. heads Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy, who ended up approving the cameo. After a round of negotiations, the cameo scene was allegedly shot in September.
(featured image: Warner Bros.)
