At 6’2″ with a broad physique, British actor Henry Cavill had the makings of a Hollywood leading man for years. His star career dates back to 2002 with a feature film adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo. After a series of appearances on several television shows, including Showtime’s The TudorsCavill then appeared in a handful of major studio films such as Tristan and Isolde (2006), Star dust (2007) and immortals (2011).
It was when Cavill donned the red cape that he gained wide international recognition. His portrayal of Clark Kent in DC Extended Universe superhero movies Steel man (2013), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) and Justice League (2017) certainly opened the door to leading roles in other action films such as Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018). In the midst of the recent release of The magician second season and Enola Holmes 2, let’s take a look at the British actor’s best roles to date.
9 Enola Holmes 2
After the great success of Netflix Enola Holmes, Mille Bobby Brown returned alongside her on-screen older brother Henry Cavill as Enola and Sherlock Holmes for Enola Holmes 2. After a girl mysteriously disappears, Enola’s help is enlisted to solve the case. Of course, she also relies heavily on her brother, Sherlock, whose meticulous methods and unparalleled logic aid her investigation.
8 immortals
Impressively, Henry Cavill reportedly avoided any make-up and visual effects team work and instead achieved the eight-pack he sports in the film without cosmetic assistance. immortals is based on elements of Greek mythology and tells the story of the crazed King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke), who wants to rain terror on mankind. Advance Theseus (Cavill), a peasant… of Herculean figure. As mankind’s only hope against this treacherous evil, Theseus must face the tyrannical Hyperion.
7 The Tudors (2007-2010)
The hit TV show that aired on the BBC and Showtime ran for four seasons before it ended. As the title suggests, the show concerned the never-ending adventures of Britain’s most infamous king, Henry VIII. The show follows everything from their first marriage to their last and their ill-fated battle with the Catholic Church, whereby the Church of England is formed as a result of the fallout. Henry Cavill plays nobleman Charles Brandon, Henry VIII’s closest confidant.
6 Star dust
With the duo reuniting for the Apple TV+ movie, argylethe duo of Matthew Vaughn and Henry Cavill planted the seeds in the 2007 family fantasy adventure Star dusta Matthew Vaughn film followed his brilliant film debut, Layer cake with. Tristan Thorn promises his beloved, Victoria (Sienna Miller), that he will leave his country estate and enter the magical realm of Stormhold to retrieve a star for her, unbeknownst to him, this decision will change his life forever.
5 Enola Holmes (2020)
Enola Holmes was a hit last year and spawned the aforementioned sequel. Set in England in 1884, the story takes place in a world on the brink of change. It follows 16-year-old Enola (Millie Bobby Brown) as she finds herself in the care of her brothers Sherlock (Cavill) and Mycroft (Sam Claflin) following the disappearance of Enola’s mother (Helena Bonham Carter). Refusing to play by her brothers’ rules, Enola runs away to look for her mother in London. But when her journey involves her in a mystery, Enola becomes a detective in her own right, outwitting her famous brother as she unravels the conspiracy.
On its opening weekend, Enola Holmes it was the second most watched item on Netflix and received generally favorable reviews. Brown excels in her performance as young Enola, and Cavill is charming in his own right as the legendary detective – despite the fact that he doesn’t do much during the film. It will be interesting to see if his character becomes more active in the upcoming sequel.
“He’s going to be the Sherlock we know in the sense that to the rest of the world he might be aloof and cold, but with Enola he had to have an emotional connection,” Cavill said. GQ UK following the release of the first film. “That was key – and something different from what we’ve had in previous Sherlocks.”
4 Uncle’s Man (2015)
One could argue that it was inevitable that Cavill would appear in a Guy Ritchie movie. The Uncle Man is set in the Cold War era, with Cavill playing CIA agent Napoleon Solo, who ends up working on a joint mission to stop a private criminal organization from building a nuclear bomb. Co-starring Alicia Vikander, Hugh Grant and Armie Hammer, the spy thriller received mixed reviews, but Cavill effectively carries it – despite an unusually subdued turn for a Guy Ritchie project – following his recent debut as Superman two years earlier.
“I think the hardest thing for me was the accent,” Cavill told flavormag. “When we started, Guy said, ‘Okay, I want something a little bit like Clark Gable, but not Clark Gable.’ And I said, ‘Okay, cool.’ So I sat down with Andrew Jack, our dialect coach, and he told me some Clark Gable stuff. We work on it.
3 The Sorcerer (2019-)
The magician is back, after a pandemic-impacted break between seasons 1 and 2. Netflix’s fantasy drama series follows the story of Geralt of Rivia (Cavill), a lonely monster hunter who struggles to find his place in the world. But when fate draws him toward a powerful sorceress and a young princess with a special gift, the three must learn to navigate the increasingly volatile Continent.
The show has received generally positive feedback from critics and viewers alike, with a third season already confirmed by Netflix. Cavill is charismatic and humorous in the lead role, and his dedication to the role is indisputable. He even tore his tendon while filming a scene for Season 2!
“The difficulty was working while I was injured,” he said. The Hollywood Reporter. “Because I wanted to do more for the production – I know how important it was for them to get things done. So it took finding the balance between ‘Yeah, let’s push, push, push’ and ‘Wow, wait, if I tear this up any further, it’ll be the end of my acting career.’ That was my worst moment of the last year – professionally.”
two Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018)
Add some facial hair to Cavill’s imposing demeanor, and he’ll make an awesome villain for the Mission Impossible franchise. Mission: Impossible – Fallout takes place two years after Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) successfully captured Solomon Lane (Sean Harris). The remnants of the Syndicate reformed into another organization called the Apostles. Under the leadership of a mysterious fundamentalist, the organization plans to acquire three plutonium cores. Ethan and his team are sent to Berlin to intercept them with the help of a shady CIA agent (Cavill), who is later revealed to be an ally of the Apostles.
Cavill’s layered performance is punctuated by a certain ferocity that has its moment of glory in an epic fight surrounded by toilets and sinks. “Overall, the bathroom fight took four weeks to shoot, which, for a scene as intense as this one, definitely felt uncomfortably long,” he said. Cavill said collider. “The best memory was when Tom and I finally confessed to each other how much pain we were in. That was definitely the last day of filming for the fight!”
1 Man of Steel (2013)
Cavill’s performance as Clark Kent was polarizing Steel man‘s release, but in retrospect it is their best performance to date. Zack Snyder’s 2013 film follows the superhero during his upbringing, with Cavill winning our hearts in the adult version. As a young man in the film, Clark travels to discover where he came from and what he was sent here for. But the hero in him must finally emerge if he is to save the world from annihilation and become the symbol of hope for all mankind.
“I was 100% excited watching the movie,” Cavill said in a 2013 interview. “Yes, I was privy to the magic of the movie and yes, I had that personal experience because I was there, but I got emotional throughout the movie. I wanted to stand up and cheer and support different characters and ask all the different questions that the movie asks. It was a great experience. I was speechless after seeing it. I’ve watched it twice more since then and felt the same way after each time, and I can’t wait to watch it again.”