Henry Cavill facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Henry Cavill
Cavill in 2019
Born	Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill (1983-05-05) 5 May 1983 (age 40) St Helier, Jersey
Nationality	British
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2001–present
Signature

Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill (/ˈkævəl/ KAV-əl; born 5 May 1983) is a British actor. He is known for his portrayal of Charles Brandon in Showtime's The Tudors (2007–2010), DC Comics character Superman in the DC Extended Universe (2013–2023), Geralt of Rivia in the Netflix fantasy series The Witcher (2019–2023), and Sherlock Holmes in the Netflix film Enola Holmes (2020) and its 2022 sequel.

Cavill began his career with roles in the film adaptations The Count of Monte Cristo (2002) and I Capture the Castle (2003). He played supporting roles in several television series, including BBC's The Inspector Lynley Mysteries (2002) and ITV's Midsomer Murders (2003), and later appeared in other films, such as Tristan & Isolde (2006), Stardust (2007), and Immortals (2011). Following his international breakthrough as Superman, he starred in the spy films The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015) and Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018).

Early life

Cavill was born on 5 May 1983, the fourth of five boys in a Roman Catholic family at Saint Helier, Jersey, in the Channel Islands. His mother, Marianne Dalgliesh, was a secretary in a bank. She was born in Jersey and is of Scottish, English and Irish heritage. His father, Colin Cavill, was born in Chester, England and was a stockbroker. He was educated at St Michael's Preparatory School in Saint Saviour, Jersey, before attending Stowe School in Stowe, Buckinghamshire. In 2000, while playing rugby, 16-year-old Cavill met actor Russell Crowe, who was shooting on location at Stowe for the film Proof of Life. The actor shared some acting tips and later sent a package to his boarding school. The two actors later worked together on Man of Steel.

Career

Cavill began his film career with a role in Laguna (2001) and Kevin Reynolds' adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo (2002). He continued with appearances in BBC's The Inspector Lynley Mysteries (2002), the television film Goodbye, Mr. Chips (2002), and the television series Midsomer Murders (2003). In 2003, he had a supporting role in I Capture the Castle, followed by Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005), Red Riding Hood (2006) and Tristan & Isolde (2006). He had a minor role in Matthew Vaughn's adaptation of Stardust (2007).

Cavill attending the premiere of Whatever Works at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival

From 2007 to 2010, Cavill had a leading role in Showtime's television series The Tudors, as Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk. The series was commercially well-received and it went on to be nominated for a Golden Globe in 2007 and won an Emmy in 2008. Cavill gave the show credit for bolstering his career: "It's done the most for me to date. [...] Now that there's an audience somewhere in America that's aware of who I am, I have more sell-ability, because of The Tudors." Entertainment Weekly named him the "Most Dashing Duke" and praised his work on The Tudors for displaying "charm, depth and a killer bod".

Cavill had been set to play Superman in McG's 2004 film, Superman: Flyby. McG pulled out of the project and direction was taken over by director Bryan Singer, who recast Brandon Routh as the lead in Superman Returns. Cavill was also the cause of a write-in effort from 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, the author of the Twilight series, was outspoken in favour of Cavill playing the character of Edward Cullen in the Twilight film, calling him her "perfect Edward". However, by the time production of the film began, Cavill was too old to play the character, and again the role went to Pattinson. 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 2005, Cavill was a final choice 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, and Craig ultimately landed the role.

While appearing in The Tudors, Cavill starred in director Joel Schumacher's horror film, Blood Creek (2008), and had a supporting role in Woody Allen's comedy film Whatever Works (2009). He went on to play the lead role of Theseus in Tarsem Singh's mythological film, Immortals, released 11 November 2011, and starred, alongside Bruce Willis, in The Cold Light of Day released in 2012.

On 30 January 2011, it was announced that Cavill had been cast in the role of Clark Kent / Superman in director Zack Snyder's Man of Steel. Snyder called Cavill "the perfect choice to don the cape and S shield." Entertainment media applauded Henry Cavill on his road to success. On being chosen for the role, Cavill commented, "In the pantheon of superheroes, Superman is the most recognized and revered character of all time, and I am honoured to be a part of his return to the big screen." Cavill reprised the role of Superman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, a 2016 sequel which featured a crossover with Batman and Wonder Woman. He attended the San Diego Comic-Con in disguise to surprise the cast of Suicide Squad.

Cavill at the 2016 San Diego Comic Con

Cavill returned as Superman in the 2017 theatrical version of Justice League, which had been reworked by director Joss Whedon after Snyder left the project due to a family tragedy. He appeared again in Zack Snyder's Justice League which premiered on HBO Max in March 2021 after an intense fan campaign to see the Snyder cut. His manager Dany Garcia said in 2016 that he was working on a new standalone Superman film. Directors Matthew Vaughn and Christopher McQuarrie were reportedly interested. Shortly after the release of Justice League, Cavill revealed he was under contract to play Superman in one more film.

In 2015, he co-starred with Armie Hammer in the film version of spy series The Man from U.N.C.L.E, directed by Guy Ritchie. In 2018, Cavill co-starred as August Walker in the action spy film Mission: Impossible – Fallout, the sixth installment of the film series. Later that year, he starred in the psychological thriller Night Hunter (originally titled Nomis). Cavill has expressed interest in taking over the role of James Bond after Daniel Craig leaves the role.

From 2019 to 2023, Cavill portrayed the mutant monster hunter Geralt of Rivia in the hit Netflix fantasy drama The Witcher, an adaptation of the book series of the same name by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. The series premiered on 20 December 2019 and had its early premiere on Służewiec Racetrack in Warsaw on 18 December 2019. In late October 2022, Cavill and Netflix announced that he would exit from The Witcher after the third season released in 2023, and would be replaced by Liam Hemsworth.

On 27 June 2019, it was announced that Cavill would portray Sherlock Holmes in Legendary Entertainment's film adaptation of The Enola Holmes Mysteries, with Millie Bobby Brown in the eponymous role. On 13 May 2021, it was announced that he would reprise his role in Enola Holmes 2.

On 21 May 2021, it was announced that Cavill would portray the lead role in the reboot of Highlander, although his exact character is unknown. On 8 July 2021, it was announced that Cavill would join an all-star cast for director Matthew Vaughn's new spy film Argylle. The same month, an article by Deadline reported that he would star in The Rosie Project, directed by Steve Falk and based on the book of the same name, written by Australian author Graeme Simsion.

Cavill negotiated what was intended to be a one-time contract with Warner Bros. to return as Superman in Black Adam, and appeared in a cameo in the mid-credit scene of the film. Later a sequel to Man of Steel was put back in development, with Cavill set to return. He confirmed in October 2022 that he would appear in future DCEU films and referred to his mid-credits cameo as "just a very small taste of things to come". However, in December 2022 Cavill released a statement saying that his future involvement as Superman was no longer moving forward after meeting with new DC Studios executives James Gunn and Peter Safran; Variety reported that Cavill is eyed to play a different DC character.

Cavill will reteam with director Guy Ritchie on the World War II spy film The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, with Jerry Bruckheimer producing. The film is based on a true story by British author Damien Lewis.

After the acquisition of global rights to the Warhammer 40,000 franchise by Amazon Studios in December 2022, Cavill was attached to star in and executive produce projects related to it.

Personal life

Cavill is described as British and English. He was born on Jersey, an island in the Channel Islands. Cavill resides in South Kensington, London. He was engaged to English show jumper Ellen Whitaker from 2011 until 2012. In May 2021, he announced his relationship with Natalie Viscuso.

In 2016, Cavill started practicing Brazilian jiu-jitsu, having been seen training at Roger Gracie's academy in London. Cavill supports the Jersey Rugby Club. While living in the United States, Cavill began to watch American football and became a supporter of the National Football League's (NFL) Kansas City Chiefs.

He has been an avid gamer since childhood, at one point missing a phone call from Zack Snyder telling him he got the role of Superman because he was too busy playing World of Warcraft. He prefers PC gaming over consoles, having been introduced to it by his father when he was a young boy, and has been building and maintaining his own gaming computer. He credited his experience playing The Witcher video game series prior to the show's production with motivating him to seek out the role of Geralt. He has also named the Total War series of strategy games to be among his favourites, and in May 2020 it was announced that a new character paying tribute to Cavill and his Witcher character Geralt would be added to Total War: Warhammer 2 via DLC; Cavill, Loremaster of Hoeth. Cavill also enjoys the Warhammer 40,000 series of games and fiction, saying he "genuinely can't get enough of the lore they have built over the decades".

Cavill is a spokesman for the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, and an ambassador for The Royal Marines Charity. He launched the running phase of the Royal Marines 1664 Challenge and took part in The Gibraltar Rock Run 2014.

Filmography

Key

Denotes films that have not yet been released

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2001	Laguna	Thomas Aprea
2002	The Count of Monte Cristo	Albert Mondego
2003	I Capture the Castle	Stephen Colley
2005	Hellraiser: Hellworld	Mike
2006	Tristan & Isolde	Melot
	Red Riding Hood	The Hunter
2007	Stardust	Humphrey
2009	Whatever Works	Randy
	Blood Creek	Evan Marshall
2011	Immortals	Theseus
2012	The Cold Light of Day	Will
2013	Man of Steel	Kal-El / Clark Kent / Superman
2015	The Man from U.N.C.L.E.	Solo
2016	Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice	Kal-El / Clark Kent / Superman
2017	Sand Castle	Capt. Syverson
	Justice League	Kal-El / Clark Kent / Superman
2018	Mission: Impossible – Fallout	August Walker
	Night Hunter	Marshall
2020	Enola Holmes	Sherlock Holmes
2021	Zack Snyder's Justice League	Kal-El / Clark Kent / Superman
2022	Black Adam		Uncredited cameo; post-credits scene
	Enola Holmes 2	Sherlock Holmes
2023	The Flash	Kal-El / Clark Kent / Superman	Uncredited cameo
2024	Argylle	Argylle	Post-production
TBA	The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare	TBA	Post-production
	Untitled Guy Ritchie Action Film	TBA	Post-production

Television

Video games

Year	Title	Voice role	Ref.
TBA	Squadron 42	Ryan Enright

Awards and nominations

See also

In Spanish: Henry Cavill para niños