Henry Cavill Talks About the Benefits of Playing Beloved Characters, Plus His Hope of Getting Involved as a Producer

Actor Henry Cavill has had a great career playing many well-known and established characters like Sherlock Holmes, Superman, Geralt of Rivia, and others. He has done a great job, but the actor knows there are both advantages and drawbacks to playing characters that people already know and love.

During a press junket attended by Total Film, the actor discussed the challenges of taking on a famous character from an existing intellectual property, saying:

"I think that it is a bit of a trap to try and bring something new every time with these iconic characters – because they are so beloved already. And while it can be interesting to provide a slightly new twist to things, I think it's important to stay faithful and loyal to what these characters are without trying to be too different. Often a script alone will allow a sense of difference or a change in technology will allow a difference to be in there. But iconic characters are iconic for a reason, and I think meddling with them too much can lead down a tricky path."

He went on to talk about playing Sherlock Holmes in the Enola Holmes movies on Netflix, and when asked what he likes and dislikes about the role, he said:

"I would never change anything in Sherlock. It’s not my place to change anything in Sherlock. But there is a certain glee I take out of his – what's the word? The fact that he's not socially aware. He will say what he's thinking and he will be totally fine with it, and he'll move on. And I think that there's a comedic essence to that, especially in Victorian England, where he's not necessarily conforming to the rules, he's just saying how it is."

When asked what makes him take on a role, iconic or otherwise, Cavill says that at this point in his career it has to be "something that I love." He also talked about his hope for his future as a producer:

"An IP that I love is always a draw. It’s also incredibly important at this stage that if it's not necessarily an IP that – I mean, normally when a big IP comes in, you may sign on before anything's written and you may sign on as an actor. In the future, I'll hopefully sign on as a producer so I can be there from the beginning in the creative process."

Henry Cavill is such a great actor. It’s great to see him back in the role of Superman, and it will be fun to see what else he does with his career. Are there any other characters you’d like to see Cavill take on?