Henry Cavill, Man of Steel

Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill (born 5 May 1983) is a British actor. He has appeared in the films The Count of Monte Cristo and Stardust, and played the role of Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, on the Showtime series The Tudors, from 2007 until 2010. He has been cast to play Superman in the 2012 film Superman: Man of Steel.

Cavill had been set to star as Superman in director McG’s 2004 film Superman: Flyby. However, McG pulled out of the project and direction was taken over by director Bryan Singer, who recast Brandon Routh as the lead. Cavill was also the cause of a write-in effort of fans to see him cast as Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005). The role eventually went to Robert Pattinson. Stephenie Meyer, author of the Twilight series, was outspokenly in favor of Cavill playing the character of Edward Cullen in the Twilight film, calling him her "perfect Edward". By the time production of the movie began, however, Cavill was too old to play the character, and again the role went to Robert Pattinson. In 2005, Cavill was a final contender for the role of James Bond in Casino Royale. The producers and director Martin Campbell were torn between him and Daniel Craig; reportedly Campbell supported Cavill but the producers preferred an older Bond. Ultimately Craig landed the role. In their December 2005 issue, Empire magazine dubbed Cavill the "Unluckiest Man in Hollywood" for this series of near-misses. Despite reports that he was a contender for Batman in Batman Begins, Cavill confirmed that he never auditioned for nor was offered the role.

In early 2008, Cavill became a model/spokesperson for Dunhill fragrances. The television ad featured a suited-up Cavill walking through the Union Jack flag, before mounting a helicopter. A second television ad featured Cavill driving a car through a deserted London at night, and meeting with a young woman. He starred in director Joel Schumacher's horror film Blood Creek (2008) and in 2009 he had a minor role in Woody Allen’s comedy film Whatever Works.

Director Tarsem Singh cast Cavill in the lead role of Theseus in his mythological, big-budget special effects film Immortals, to be released November 11, 2011. In 2011 Cavill will star alongside Bruce Willis in The Cold Light of Day. On January 30, 2011, it was announced that Cavill had been cast in the role of Clark Kent/Superman in director Zack Snyder's Superman: Man of Steel. Snyder called Cavill "the perfect choice to don the cape and S shield."