The Hollywood Reporter has shared more insights into Henry Cavill's Superman departure, kicking off by confirming that DC Studios is plotting a reboot that will likely cut most, if not all ties to the previous regime and the DCEU. That might go some way in explaining why both Cavill and Gal Gadot's cameos in The Flash have now been scrapped.
As we're sure you're aware, it was Black Adam star Dwayne Johnson who pushed for Cavill to return as Superman. After the British actor headed to social media to announce that he was back, The Rock quickly took credit for the news, claiming to have gone around former DC Films boss Walter Hamada to make the cameo happen.
However, Black Adam's poor box office performance called Johnson's plans for a sequel, spin-offs, and a Black Adam vs. Superman battle into question even before James Gunn and Peter Safran pulled the plug on Cavill's time as the Man of Tomorrow.
One insider tells the trade, "In the end, [Henry] was a pawn in Dwayne's failed attempt to control a piece of DC."
As we've speculated, it seems Johnson made use of Superman's popularity to boost interest in Black Adam and ensure his plans for the DCEU would come to fruition. It's no secret the former pro wrestler wanted to take charge of his own corner of that shared world, but the odds of any of the projects coming to fruition are low.
Since DC Studios was launched, Johnson and/or his team are alleged to have leaked financial data to Deadline in an effort to make Black Adam look profitable. However, insiders later described using toy sales and home entertainment projections as a laughable way of trying to make the movie look like anything other than what it was: a disappointment.
Something tells us he won't be back as Teth-Adam.
As for the Man of Steel sequel Warner Bros. planned under Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy's watch, the pitch put forward by Steven Knight (Peaky Blinders) was said to feature Brainiac as the lead villain.
Stay tuned for updates!
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