In the past few years, Henry Cavill has worked on cementing his place as one of the most exciting acting talents in Hollywood. Hailing from Jersey, the British actor is the face of many iconic roles including his recent venture in Enola Holmes as the infamous detective and none other than Superman in the DC Extended Universe. He also plays Geralt of Rivera in the Netflix adaptation of The Witcher, and he shows no sign of slowing down any time soon.

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However, there are still many interesting stories to tell about the 38-year-old actor and his life before nailing the role of Clark Kent, which later catapulted his career to an international audience. He passed on not one, but two roles in the Twilight and Harry Potter films, which could have ended up becoming career-defining moments for him. He was also nearly cast as the ladykiller agent James Bond before it ended up in Daniel Craig's safe hands. Hre's a slight look into Henry Cavill's life before Man of Steel in 2013, and what the future holds in store for the infamous actor.

6 Henry Cavill Met His Future 'Man Of Steel' Castmate At The Age Of 16

Born as the fourth out of five boys in the family, young Henry Cavill developed an interest in acting from such a young age. When he was playing rugby with his school peers back in 2000, Cavill, then 16 years old, met his future Man of Steel castmate Russel Crowe when the latter was on the set of Proof of Life in Stowe, Vermont. He was Cavill's real-life hero that inspired him to pursue acting, and the rest is history.

"I walked up to him, stuck my hand out and said 'Hi my name's Henry, I am considering becoming an actor, any tips? What's it like?,"" he recalled in an interview, adding, "And he said "well you know the pay is great but sometimes they don't treat you so good - and I'm paraphrasing!"

5 Henry Cavill Nailed His Breakthrough With 'The Tudors'

Henry Cavill made his breakthrough in his home country back in 2007 when he became one of the leads of The Tudors, a Showtime historic-fiction series that tells the story of 16th-century England. The actor played the role of Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, throughout its four seasons and 38 episodes running from 2007 until 2010.

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"Surely my interest in fiction and history made me seek this type of role. When I was a kid I read a book of short stories about Greek mythology and since then I became a student of antiquity," said the actor on how his interest in history helped him prepare for the role, adding, "My imagination is full of these tales of epic battles, acts of heroism and the rise and decay of the Roman Empire. All this helped me as an actor and on projects that interested me."

4 Henry Cavill Was Almost Cast In 'Twilight'

Henry Cavill was nearly cast as Edward Cullen in the Twilight series back in the late 2000s to the point where Stephenie Meyer, the series' author, hailed him as her "perfect Edward." The role eventually ended up going to Robert Pattinson because he was too old to play the role by the time the production began (Cavill was already 24 while the character was supposed to be 17).

The Twilight Saga ended up becoming an important cornerstone of the pop culture, amassing a total of $3.3 billion in box office out of $401 million budget for its five films from 2008 until 2012. However, it did take a while for the original actor Robert Pattinson to "escape" the shadow of the franchise and be more than just "the Twilight guy."

3 Henry Cavill Nearly Landed The James Bond Role

With that being said, Twilight wasn't the only big franchise role that Henry Cavill had ever missed on throughout his career. In 2005, Cavill, then aged 22, came the second to play James Bond in Casino Royale before it ended up going to Daniel Craig. Following the retirement of the latter from the role, Cavill is now open to be his optimal successor, and his charming personality is more than ideal for the role. It won't be without competition, though, as he'll be lining up against the likes of Tom Hardy, Tom Hiddleston, and Idris Elba to fill the gap.

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2 Henry Cavill Was Almost Cast In The Fourth 'Harry Potter' Film

Speaking about iconic roles, Robert Pattinson not only took one, but two major roles from Henry Cavill. Apart from the lead of Twilight, the Batman actor also won the role of Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the fourth installment of J.K. Rowling's magic book series. Despite being a minor role due to the character's early death in the franchise, it could have catapulted Cavill's career a lot sooner.

1 What's Next For Henry Cavill?

So, what's next for the star? The 38-year-old is showing no sign of slowing down anytime soon, and if anything, he already has a plethora of projects on his horizon. He's now gearing up for the second film of Netflix's Enola Holmes, a modern-day reboot of British classic sci-fi flick of the 80s Highlander, and more.

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