It’s only January, but all these superhero buzz has been traveling faster than a speeding bullet. But this weekend’s breaking news is BIG, powerful in fact, more powerful than a loco… [ok, enough with the catchphrases]. Anyway, if you’re up on movie news or happened to be on Twitter yesterday, then you’ve probably heard it… one of my favorite British actor HENRY CAVILL has been cast as Man of Steel! Woot! Woot!! YAY! Hurrah!!
That’s a steel-y gaze, Mr. Cavill
ehm, okay, sorry… now that I’ve regained my composure…

Y’see, as far back as 2002 when he had a small role as Jim Caviezel’s son in The Count of Monte Cristo, my husband and I actually said to one another, ‘this guy could be Superman in a few years’ as he was only 19 years old at the time. Even last year, when the topic of who should play the Kryptonian hero came up before Zack Snyder was announced to direct, I still championed for Cavill for he role. So it’s awesome that nine years after I first saw him on screen, he’s finally going to be a household name.

Here’s a photo of him with glasses (rockin’ the Clark Kent look I’d say!) and what he could possibly look as Superman (thanks to Superherohype.com forum):

But it wasn’t always a smooth sailing for the English actor. In fact, EMPIRE magazine actually dubbed him ‘most unlucky man in Hollywood’ and as I mentioned in this post, he’s been passed over for not one but FOUR iconic roles: James Bond, Superman, Batman (for The Dark Knight) and Edward in Twilight (despite him being Stephanie Meyer’s first choice). So for the past few years, from 2007 until last year, Cavill’s claim to fame was playing Charles Brandon in the historical bodice ripper drama The Tudors.

I’ve been cautiously optimistic — but optimistic nonetheless — of this Superman reboot. I like Zack Snyder, and with Chris Nolan as his mentor and his frequent collaborator David Goyer penning the script, how bad can it be? And now with the right actor donning the red and blue suit, it’ll be tough to keep my excitement for this movie in check 😀 According to SlashFilm, apparently Cavill was one of the top three contenders since day one, and was invited for a callback in January, where he met Zack Snyder for the first time.

The article also revealed the five other actors who were considered for the role, with two Matthews: Goode and Bomer as the top two. I like Goode and I actually suggested him for another DC superhero The Flash. Goode is said to be Cavill’s closest contender, probably because he’s worked with Snyder before in Watchmen. He reportedly declined the title role in Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter in hopes of winning Superman. The Social Network‘s Armie Hammer (the 25-year old, 6’5″ actor playing the Winklevoss twins) was also up for the role.

Now the worst thing about this Superman reboot is the wait. Cavill’s got two movies lined up before that to get people familiar with his work. His upcoming films are Tarsem Singh’s Greek mythology Immortals and a thriller with Bruce Willis called The Cold Light of Day (you can see more on set photos here), which I hope will be released this year.