Why Henry Cavill Wants to Become Marvel's Captain Britain

As both Marvel and DC continue to expand their cinematic universes, most of the stars in Hollywood have scooped up a comic book role at this point. Going back several years, nobody would have expected legendary actors like Salma Hayek, Angelina Jolie, Pierce Brosnan, and Helen Mirren to take on roles in these worlds, and yet they all have now.

While there was once a separation between the two, the number of stars with roles on both sides has greatly increased. Some recent examples have included: J.K. Simmons (Commissioner Gordon and J. Jonah Jameson), Michael Keaton (Vulture and Batman), and Idris Elba (Heimdall and Bloodsport).

Ever since the complications surrounding Justice League, the main DCEU timeline has been left in a state of flux with little in the way of a consistent direction. Since then, the studio has largely pushed forward with standalone releases including Joker, The Batman, and several movies in the main DCEU with almost no connective tissue.

One particularly messy situation has stemmed from DC's poster-boy Superman, who was once played by British star Henry Cavill. As of now, Warner Bros. is pushing ahead with two separate Superman projects, both starring a Black lead; one will follow the traditional Kal-El while the other will star Val-Zod. 

With the studio now working on two other projects starring the Man of Steel, it appears Cavill's time in the iconic suit has come to an end. Ever since speculation began of the actor's DC departure, Marvel fans have been theorizing which hero he could play in the MCU, and it seems Cavill himself is interested in one particular fan cast. 

Henry Cavill Wants to Play Captain Britain

During a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Superman actor Henry Cavill was asked which Marvel hero he would be interested in playing if he were to jump ship from the DCEU to the MCU.

The British star acknowledged that he "seen the various rumors" about him playing Captain Britain and would like to play a "cool, modernized version of that" because "there's something fun about that:"

“I'm never going to say a Marvel character that is already being played by someone else because everyone's doing such an amazing job. However, I have the internet and I have seen the various rumors about Captain Britain and that would be loads of fun to do a cool, modernized version of that — like the way they modernized Captain America. There's something fun about that, and I do love being British.”

Who is Captain Britain?

Brian Braddock aka Captain Britain gets his powers from the Amulet of Might, an artifact given to him by the magician Merlyn after a motorcycle accident, allowing him to protect his European nation. Typically, his key powers have included super strength, flight, shooting energy beams, and the ability to produce force fields. 

While originally intended to appear exclusively in the British market, Captain Britain's popularity has since led the character to crossover into America. Since then, he has been a member of several major teams, such as the Secret Avengers, Illuminati, and more.

The European hero even has Multiverse connections, having been a member of the Captain Britain Corps, a team of different Variants of the character each from their own world. With the Multiverse becoming increasingly relevant in the MCU, now seems like the perfect time to introduce Captain Britain.

The character was interestingly referenced in Avengers: Endgame as, during Tony Stark and Steve Rogers' trip to retrieve the Tesseract from 1970, Peggy Carter mentions someone named Braddock who hasn't checked in recently.

Despite going by a different name, Hayley Atwell's Variant Captain Carter bears some resemblance to the British hero, which could cast some doubt on an imminent MCU debut. Although the choice for her to operate under a different name while still wearing the Union Jack attire seems to suggest Marvel Studios has some interest in using Captain Britain. 

If Henry Cavill's time as Superman is complete, the British star would be a perfect choice to play Captain Britain and certainly carries the global stardom to get the entire world interested in the character. As the actor is a major star in Hollywood at the moment, it wouldn't be shocking if Marvel Studios tried to pick him up for a key role.

Fans will have to wait and see what the future holds for Henry Cavill, but for now, the former Superman star will next be seen in Season 2 of Netflix's The Witcher, which releases on December 17, 2021.