Henry Cavill has been one of the many talents to don the red cape of Metropolis Marvel. However unsatisfying the conclusion to his reign may have been, the actor’s gritty embodiment of the DC superhero left many fans craving more. We have entered a new chapter in the history of live-action DC comic-book adaptations. Yet, Zack Snyder’s take on these classic characters remains something many find hard to let go of.
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The conclusion of the Zack Snyder-directed Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice made things a little awkward for Cavill’s participation in the franchise. With 2017’s Justice League, Snyder had to step down during the post-production of the endeavor and was replaced by Joss Whedon instead. While an ambitious venture, the superhero all-star ensemble didn’t sit well among fans.
Making an appearance on the Empire podcast, the Enola Holmes alum described an odd circumstance he ran into while promoting the star-studded movie, which was nearly impossible for him to navigate.
Henry Cavill Talked About Justice League‘s “Ridiculous” Marketing
The ending to Batman v Superman left fans wondering about the fate of Superman. Many people speculated about his potential return in DCEU’s subsequent endeavors, but the exact scope of it remained uncertain. The situation became more perplexing when Warner Bros. chose to exclude the character from any promotional content related to their follow-up flagship, Justice League.
While this was done with the intention of not blatantly spoiling the audience with the superhero’s return, it ended up confusing not only the fans but also Henry Cavill. The promotional and marketing content deliberately concealed Superman’s destiny. However, Cavill’s involvement in the film’s press tour created a ludicrous situation for the actor. Talk about a puzzling attempt at concealing spoilers.
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Cavill’s participation in the press events, despite Warner Bros. keeping his return uncertain, didn’t effectively support the studio’s original intention. Instead, the actor was presented with a complicated scenario to navigate.
Talking to Empire Magazine, The Witcher star said the following about the situation:
“That whole concept was faintly ridiculous and I honestly believe everyone viewed it as such. Of course, if I’m on the press tour I’m in the movie. Obviously, you knew, and that was a different little tap dance we danced together.”
While he acknowledged the studio’s marketing approach as somewhat choppy and incoherent, the actor concluded his statement by emphasizing the significance of maintaining an element of mystery in such movies. On a separate occasion, Henry Cavill disclosed his candid feelings about participating in the Justice League press tour while upholding the façade of Superman’s uncertain return.
Henry Cavill’s “Super Awkward” Experience Of Promoting Justice League
Talking to the Empire Podcast, Henry Cavill revealed how challenging it was for him to be a part of the interviews during Justice League’s press tour. Being kept absent from promotional materials only to be invited to participate in press events created an uber-awkward scenario to navigate. Following was the actor’s statement:
“It was one of those weird situations where I guess… no one really knew what they wanted, and it was like ‘Hey, we need Henry on the press tour, but let’s not tell anyone he’s in the movie,’ I was like ‘Okay, well, it’s going to be super awkward for me, guys. Thank you for giving me an impossible scenario.”
He further added,
“Thank you for giving me an impossible scenario. I’m just going to say to people: ‘Well, yeah, I was here for moral support. I made the tea. I made the tea for an entire movie.’ I’m pretty sure that no one bought it.”
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The mishandling of Superman for Justice League’s marketing endeavors put Cavill in a humiliating position. His dissatisfaction was quite evident. Selling the act of the superhero’s debatable return fell apart the moment Cavill was noticeably included in the film’s press promotion.
This wouldn’t be the only aspect of the film to dishearten the fans, critics, and actors associated with the premise. This is evidenced by the mere 39% approval rating the film has on Rotten Tomatoes. In contrast to the 2017 attempt, Zack Snyder‘s 2021 cut of the film has garnered a significantly improved rating of 72% on the Tomato Meter.
Both Justice League (2017) and Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021) are available for streaming on Max.
Source: Empire Podcast
