With the future of Warner Bros' Cavill has been asked to return as part of Warner Bros Discovery's new "ten-year plan" for the DC heroes, and rejected the possibility of a return. While this is just a rumor, and it would be unfortunate to never see Henry Cavill put on the cape again, he would be very justified to not return given the DCEU's creative chaos and the questionable decisions in all three of the movies that saw him play the role of Superman himself.
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As strong as Cavill's performances were, the DCEU movies never seemed to understand Superman, instead trying to chase the success of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy by interjecting superficial "darkness" into the story of a character that was always designed to be optimistic and inspiring. The climax of Man of Steel - in which Superman destroys much of downtown Metropolis and ultimately kills General Zod - was widely criticized by audiences as being all wrong for the character. Batman v. Superman unconvincingly killed off Cavill's Superman in an empty echo of the "Death of Superman" comic event. As such, Henry Cavill choosing to opt out of a Superman return would be understandable.
Will Henry Cavill's Superman Return Ever Happen?
The "Snyder Cut" of Justice League, eventually released on HBO Max, was the best movie of the three, but had its theatrical version drastically altered in an attempt to chase the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. During this time, various conflicts occurred during the extended production of the DCEU movie, most notably including the way Warner handled their working relationship with Snyder, and the allegations regarding Joss Whedon on the Justice League set.
While there have been some strong DCEU movies since then, the studio still lacks coherent vision. Warner Bros. has yet to show that they understand Superman enough to give Henry Cavill a strong Superman return movie, and frequently teasing reboots such as the Superman movie produced by Michael B. Jordan has suggested anything but a consistent attempt to get Cavill back. Some internal reports have suggested that studio execs even think the character is unsuited to modern audiences. The abrupt cancellation of the already-filmed HBO Max movie Batgirl just further added to the sense of chaos circling the DCEU. While it seems unlikely that a theatrical Superman movie would similarly be canceled, the incident has to give Cavill, or any other actor, pause before committing to a DCEU movie.
Henry Cavill also has plenty of options besides a The Witcher, has been decidedly successful, with a third season on the way. Cavill has also been linked to roles in the MCU and future James Bond movies, and is evidently very in-demand as an action star. With Ben Affleck's Batman returning in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, it's clear that the DC Extended Universe is open to bringing back stars from the "Snyderverse" films, and this could include Henry Cavill in the future. But if Cavill prefers to focus on other projects, he would have every reason to do so.
