James Gunn is open to Henry Cavill joining the DCU, says "I talked to him"

During a recent interview with Josh Horowitz, James Gunn opened up about the painful decision to let Henry Cavill go as he decided to reboot the DCEU with his DCU.

"I talked to him about it on that day," Gunn said while speaking about his conversation with Cavill.

The Superman director was referring to the day he spoke with Cavill about the creative overhaul after joining Peter Safran as the new CEO. Back then, Gunn planned to cast another actor as the new face to portray the Man of Steel. That put an end to the talks of Cavill's potential return to the screens as the Kryptonian hero.

Despite the overhaul, Gunn didn't rule out the possibility of casting Cavill in one of the DCU projects. He admired how Cavill handled the matters in stride. So, if not as Superman, Cavill might star as another DC character.

"I would love to put Henry in something," Gunn added.

Henry Cavill's departure as the Man of Steel: DCU found a new Superman

Henry Cavill's departure as DC's iconic hero left a hole in his fans' hearts. They saw Cavill as the definitive portrayal of the son of Krypton, so they couldn't bear the thought of seeing someone else play the part. So, when the WBD announced they would bring a new Superman into the DCU, the fans were far from pleased.

Cavill's departure seemed even more unfortunate since he had more projects in the pipeline as Superman. After a cameo at the end of Dwayne Johnson's Black Adam (2022), there were rumors of a Superman/Black Adam crossover floating online. The Rock seemingly fuelled them by announcing that,

"The hierarchy of power in the DC universe is about to change."

Cavill could have starred in this rumored project.

Some sources suggest that Cavill had also shot some scenes for a Superman cameo in The Flash (2023). He was also supposed to star in a Man of Steel sequel, which never materialized.

James Gunn addressed similar concerns that came to light when he decided to spearhead the DCU in a new direction.

"It’s terrible. Believe it or not, the day we were dealing with trying to figure out if we could take the job at DC Studios. The day the deal closed, all of a sudden, they were announcing that Henry was back. And I was like, 'What is going on? We know what the plan is. The plan was to come in and do Superman.' It was really unfair to him and a total bummer," Gunn said.

While speaking with Josh Horowitz, Gunn also spoke about the unofficial theories of DC's future.

"There was a vacuum at the time and a lot of people were...they had a take on what they wanted to do at DC and they were trying to force their way and it was just never part of the equation for [WBD CEO] David Zaslav," Gunn said.

Despite all the rumors, Gunn had a pleasant experience speaking with Cavill, whom he referred to as "a class act."

"We [Gunn and Safran] came in, and that was really unfortunate. I’m like, 'This poor guy.' [Yet, Henry] was an absolute gentleman and a great guy about it. He said, 'The only thing I ask is that I’m able to reveal it myself as opposed to coming from you guys.' And I’m like, 'That’s a class act.'"

DC's new Superman is out in cinemas now.