The actor reportedly wanted to go in a different direction from Zack Snyder’s version of Superman.

Henry Cavill amassed a great fan following before he departed from the role of Superman in the DCEU. The actor played the role for almost a decade, despite only featuring in one solo film and being part of an ensemble cast in subsequent team-up films. David Corenswet replaced Cavill in James Gunn’s upcoming Superman.

Before being ousted from the franchise, Cavill was reportedly excited about a Man of Steel sequel and even discussed story ideas with his Mission Impossible: Fallout director Christopher McQuarrie. The filmmaker mentioned that they spoke about the direction in which Cavill wanted Superman to go in, which was different from what fans received.

Henry Cavill And Christopher McQuarrie Discussed Man of Steel 2 On The Sets Of Mission Impossible 6

A still from Man of Steel | Credits: Warner Bros. Pictures/Legendary Pictures/DC Entertainment/Syncopy/Peters Entertainment

Henry Cavill’s time as August Walker in Mission Impossible: Fallout was infamous for his mustache which had to be digitally removed for his Justice League reshoots. The uncanny valley CGI of Cavill’s facial hair became meme fodder for months and was one of the worst attempts at hiding continuity due to studio mismanagement.

However, the set of Mission Impossible had other DCEU-related conversations as well. According to Christopher McQuarrie, who wrote and directed the action film, he and Cavill had multiple conversations about a potential sequel to Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel and the direction in which they wanted to go.

Henry Cavill | Credits: Skydance/TC Productions/Bad Robot

McQuarrie revealed the discussions they had in an interview with Collider,

Many, many people have asked many, many, many times. I had an awesome conversation with Henry Cavill about an awesome version of Superman while we were on set. You’re sitting around for hours, waiting for stuff to be built so I can put Henry in it, and throw him off a cliff, or freeze him to death. And we talked about a really awesome version of Superman.

The filmmaker also mentioned that Cavill wanted to go in a more positive and hopeful direction than Snyder’s bleak and evil version of the superhero.

Christopher McQuarrie Blamed Studio For Not Allowing Hopeful Superman To Be In The DCEU

A still from Justice League | Credits: Warner Bros. Pictures/DC Films/RatPac-Dune Entertainment/Atlas Entertainment/Cruel and Unusual Films

The DCEU, which officially ended last year with the release of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, was characterized by mismanagement, changing plans, and expensive mistakes. The studio underwent multiple personnel changes with clashing visions that tried to catch up with rival Marvel’s interconnected universe.

However, the results were lackluster at best and disasters at worst. When asked why Henry Cavill’s vision of hopeful Superman would not be a reality, Christopher McQuarrie mentioned that the studio’s ongoing merger was one of the reasons for clashing visions. He said to Collider,

[That’s] the movie Henry wants. There’s a really, really beautiful version of that, and I honestly can’t speak for the people who are responsible for making those decisions, except to say it’s part of a giant corporate mechanism. I’m one guy. I can stand up and turn around, turn my back to you instantly, a giant corporation that’s in the middle of a merger with another giant corporation is an aircraft carrier in a broom closet being asked to turn around. 

The Mission Impossible filmmaker mentioned that though he had sympathies for the executives and studio heads dealing with the issues, there were ‘giant corporate’ mechanisms at play at the studios.