Henry Cavill and Alicia Vikander in The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

Henry Cavill will always be known for his role as Superman, but long before he ever suited up with the red cape, he was in the running to play another iconic character. It’s common knowledge that Cavill was at one point one of the names considered to play James Bond, but the role ultimately went to Daniel Craig, who portrayed the character elegantly for 15 years. However, now all these years later, Cavill’s audition tape to play James Bond has surfaced on the internet, and can now be watched by anyone for free. The screen test was posted on YouTube by Ron South, who claims to have found it on a VHS tape from the recycling bin at a movie studio.

Cavill may have missed out on playing James Bond, but his debut performance as Superman now 12 years ago helped lift him to new levels of stardom that have made him one of the biggest performers in Hollywood today. He recently made his MCU debut playing a variant of Wolverine, The Cavillrine, in Deadpool & Wolverine, the 2024 MCU tentpole that grossed over $1.3 billion globally. He is also attached to stay in In the Grey, the upcoming action thriller from director Guy Ritchie that also features Eiza González and Jake Gyllenhaal. Cavill has even been tapped for leading roles in a Warhammer 40,000 animated series for Prime Video which he will also produce, and he will star in a live-action Voltron movie, as well as a Highlander reboot that will be helmed by John Wick director Chad Stahelski.

What Do We Know About the Next Iteration of James Bond?

Practically nothing is known about the next chapter of James Bond stories at this point. Shortly before the end of 2024, James Bond producer Barbara Broccoli delivered a devastating update on the future of James Bond, saying that there was no casting, no story, and nothing in development. Bond is far too big a property to not take advantage of; the last James Bond movie grossed over $770 million at the worldwide box office. The franchise is a well just waiting to be tapped into, and while some major stars like Aaron Taylor-Johnson have been fan cast as the next to take on the role, it sounds like Amazon MGM is content with Bond being on the back burner for now.

Cavill may have missed out on James Bond, but his career didn’t suffer for it. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates on Cavill’s projects and the next generation of James Bond stories.