Henry Cavill in Man of Steel ending scene

Superman actor, Henry Cavill, recently opened up on the biggest regret of his debut film as the character, Man of Steel. Cavill has portrayed Superman aka Clark Kent since 2013 across three theatrically released films, and most recently in Zack Snyder’s Justice League, which saw its release in March of this year on HBO Max. The actor has always been a visual match for a modern interpretation of the character, with his jet-black hair and imposing physique making for a striking screen presence fit for such an icon of comic history. The attention surrounding the character led to a major boost in Cavill’s career, securing major roles in films such as Mission: Impossible – Fallout and currently playing the lead of Geralt in Netflix’s adaptation of The Witcher.

However, despite playing the original superhero, its proven hard for Cavill’s version of the character to remain at the forefront of the current comic book movie boom. Despite Man of Steel’s financial success, Warner Bros. were intent on rushing toward team-ups with other heroes that gradually pushed Superman onto the sidelines, rather than letting the character develop in a sequel of his own. All three of the theatrically released films that Cavill has featured in have also been critically panned, with Zack Snyder’s characterization of Superman being a hot topic of debate.

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THR recently interviewed Cavill, who elaborated on his biggest regret in regards to Man of Steel. In an introspective move, when asked if he had any professional regrets, Cavill criticized an element of his own performance in the final moments of the film. Specifically, he singled out a smile he gives to the character’s mother, Martha Kent, when standing over his father’s grave talking about what Clark will do now that he lives a double life. Cavill details his inflection, saying:

“There’s a scene at the end of Man of Steel, I’m talking to Martha. I would’ve smiled differently. Every time I see it, I’m like, ‘That’s an irritating smile.’ I just don’t like it. Why did I smile like that? That’s not how I smile. That I would have done it differently.”

Henry Cavill as Clark Kent Superman in Batman V Superman

Ironically, a common criticism of Cavill’s Superman was his comparatively stern demeanor when put against prior incarnations, such as Christopher Reeves. Indeed, one of the few universal positives of the theatrical Justice League cut is that Cavill was finally permitted to play a much more jovial and traditional take on the character following his resurrection via the mother box. It speaks to Cavill’s gentlemanly nature that he chooses to focus on a moment of personal evaluation when reflecting on his career as opposed to the seemingly bad hand he has been dealt in his stint as the Last Son of Krypton.

Whether Cavill will receive the opportunity to continue in the role and develop his version of Superman is very much up in the air. Rumors of Cavill exiting the DCEU have been floating around since 2018 among other discussions that his Superman could become a supporting character across other film, including a project involving a new Black Superman produced by J.J. Abrams. Cavill has certainly remained dedicated to the character, even pitching a Man of Steel sequel with Mission: Impossible – Fallout director Christopher McQuarrie. However, considering his contract with Netflix’s The Witcher and involvement in several upcoming film projects, Cavill is in high demand and his schedule seems evermore unable to accommodate a Man of Steel 2 anytime soon.