See Henry Cavill In The Classic Superman Costume

Check out what Henry Cavill looks like wearing the original Superman costume. This is a retro look for sure, but it definitely works

By Doug Norrie | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

Henry Cavill

Henry Cavill and his status in the DC Extended Universe as Superman is very much up in the air right now. Over the better part of the last year, there’s been a constant will-they-won’t-theme around how the franchise will involve Cavill as the character in future stories. But no matter the decision, one thing is clear: Cavill definitely looks the part. That much is clear and was made even more so when an Instagram user uploaded an image of Cavill wearing the original Superman costume. It’s a throwback to the original Christopher Reeves’ edition and brings back a certain nostalgia for the character. 

This latest Instagram photoshop of Henry Cavill in the original Superman suit was added by user @jscomicart and has the former strutting through a large hallway with onlookers clearly awed by his presence. There’s a certain stoicism with the look, harkening back to a more retro feel for the character while also making some necessary updates to keep it in line for a modern day and age. Check out Cavill sporting the original suit and see some of the differences from what he’s wearing more recently. 

The most obvious change in this Henry Cavill suit is the reappearance of the red underwear section that was noticeably missing when Zack Snyder updated the character for Man of Steel back in 2013. In that one, the blue body extended directly down into the legs making it appear more of a full bodysuit than a separate top and bottom. This latest picture places the red section back in though does tone it down some to not bring us all the way back to decades before when tights were all the superhero rage. 

And additionally, this retro look for Henry Cavill also keeps the muscular aspects of the upper and lower body that were noticeably absent in the original. That one, which Christopher Reeve donned had more the pajama look of yesteryear which certain wouldn’t play these days. While this one does harken back to the original color scheme and offsetting, it doesn’t go all the way back to a less intimidating version of the character. But the colors are clearly brighter than what we’ve seen more recently and does have a certain apple pie effect on Cavill’s character. 

Retro Superman suits aside, the big question is around what exactly will happen with Henry Cavill as Superman in the DC Extended Universe. Following a re-up in Zack Snyder’s Justice League earlier this year, it looked like the franchise was set to continue on with stories around Cavill as Clark Kent as they possibly geared up for a darker future for Superman, or possibly a confrontation with Darkseid. But that doesn’t seem like the short-term plan with no clear commitment from the studio about what they are doing in this regard. In fact, if anything it’s gone the opposite way with Warner deciding to completely reboot the character under JJ Abrams and Ta-Nehisi Coates. They will cast a black actor to take over the new Superman role. 

As for Henry Cavill, he’s got plenty of work regardless. In addition to his second season of The Witcher coming on Netflix, there’s also going to be an Enola Holmes sequel. Plus he’s rebooting The Highlander and has a James Bond-like franchise possibly coming down the pike as well. But man, it wouldn’t be bad to see him back up on the screen as Superman in some fashion, retro look or not.