When looking at the landscape of entertainment today, there aren’t many stars who are thriving quite like Henry Cavill is. Not only is he playing Superman in the DCEU, but he is leading the charge as Geralt in The Witcher, meaning that he is crushing it on both the big and small screen simultaneously.
Before becoming a star and the potential heir to playing James Bond, Henry Cavill was a struggling actor who simply wasn’t making progress in the business. This, in turn, led to the actor nearly retiring for another profession.
How close did Cavill come to retiring? Let’s take a look and see what he had to say about it.
Things Weren’t Going As Planned For Cavill
Breaking into the acting industry is difficult for young performers, and Henry Cavill was no exception to this when he was looking to make a name for himself early on in his career. In fact, things got to a point where Henry Cavill was actually considering retiring from acting altogether and joining the military.
As a younger performer, Cavill was landing some smaller roles, but he had yet to find one that was going to turn him into a star. According to IMDb, Cavill had landed roles in projects like The Count of Monte Cristo and I Capture the Castle, and neither of these got the attention of mainstream audiences in the way that he had hoped.
According to Mirror, Cavill talked about his lack of progress in the business, saying, “There were plenty of times I thought it wouldn't happen. At one stage I was like, 'If this next movie doesn't do well then I'm out, I'm going to join the Armed Forces.”
The process was a rough one for Cavill, but it wouldn’t take long for him to receive a bit of news that changed everything for his career. Sometimes, that random kick is all it takes, and Cavill made the most of his change in perception.
Interest In James Bond Changes His Perception
During the 2000s, James Bond was being shifted once again after Pierce Brosnan was finished with the role. Brosnan was leaving behind a huge legacy as the character, and the next Bond performer was going to have major shoes to fill. During this time, Henry Cavill was in consideration to play the iconic character. Low and behold, this was all it took for Cavill to realize that he had a chance at making it.
According to the actor, “Then I got the screen test for Bond and thought, my name is out there now, so maybe I should stick around. And I did.”
Cavill certainly looks the part, and the folks casting the new Bond saw what he could bring to the role. Ultimately, it would be Daniel Craig who landed the role of James Bond, and to be fair, he has done an incredible job with the character. Craig is slated to appear in one more film as Bond before he retires, and many people believe that Cavill would be the perfect person to replace Craig as the next James Bond.
Should Henry Cavill become the next James Bond, his career would come full circle in an amazing way. The screen test for the character kept his career going, and watching him land the character over a decade later would be amazing to see.
He Has Blossomed Into Star
While Cavill didn’t land the role of Bond during the 2000s, the star has managed to become a huge name in the industry thanks to landing other iconic characters. He really broke into the mainstream after playing Superman in the DCEU, and the recent Snyder Cut of Justice League got people interested in seeing him play the Man of Steel once again.
Not only has Cavill thrived as Superman, but he did great work as Geralt in The Witcher, which was a huge success on the small screen. Cavill was a brilliant fit in the role, and the series has a lot of hype for a season two. This is another major character for Cavill, who could add to his legacy if he lands James Bond later on.
Thanks to his perseverance, Henry Cavill has turned into a huge star in Hollywood with appearances in major hits like Mission: Impossible - Fallout and more. And to think that this almost didn’t happen due to him nearly retiring. It just goes to show what can happen when someone wades through a rough patch to continue on with their dream.