Though there is a sense of loss surrounding the end of Henry Cavill’s tenure as Superman, a look back at his appearances in the DCEU makes it clear that things weren’t always great for this iteration of the character. Some issues with Cavill’s Superman were down to creative choices, while others were created by the turmoil behind the scenes at DC and the decision to reboot their film franchise. While these flaws don’t necessarily ruin the appeal of Cavill as Superman, it will be nice to see DC trying again with a new Superman in the DCU.

Cavill’s time as Superman started in Man of Steel and continued through Black Adam, one of the later DCEU movies. Now that the DCEU timeline has officially ended with Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, it is possible to look back at every appearance of Cavill as the Man of Steel, allowing audiences to appreciate the extended performance and its highs and lows in their entirety. Now that there is no longer hope that the rough edges could be sanded down in future installments, they have become a little more clear on a rewatch of the material.

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10 Cavill’s Black Adam Cameo Went Nowhere

Black Adam (2022)

The last time Henry Cavill appeared as Superman in the DCEU was in Black Adam. He had a very small role, only showing up in a post-credits scene hinting at a future confrontation between him and Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam. Of course, after plans for a Black Adam sequel were scrapped and DC decided to reboot the franchise, this cameo never ended up amounting to anything. Instead, it became a grim reminder that when a cinematic universe dies, it will likely leave behind dangling threads and missed opportunities.

9 Jonathan Kent Gave Clark Bad Advice

Man Of Steel (2013)

When a young Clark Kent discovers his powers in Man of Steel, his father, Jonathan, essentially tells him that he should keep them to himself and that he doesn’t owe anybody anything. Jonathan Kent is essentially the anti-Uncle Ben in this movie, discouraging Clark from using his powers to do good.

Even when Clark could save Jonathan’s life from an approaching tornado, Jon tells him no and lets himself die. His sacrifice isn’t depicted as fully noble in this regard, because it’s done in part to stop Clark from helping others. It is also made effectively meaningless later down the line, since Clark Kent goes on to become Superman anyway.

8 Cavill Didn’t Get To Show Off His Full Range Of Talents

Man Of Steel (2013) – Black Adam (2022)

Henry Cavill has proven he is capable of a lot of range. He nailed Geralt of Rivia’s deadpan snark in The Witcher, and he also pulled off the charming and boisterous Napoleon Solo in The Man From UNCLE. Unfortunately, most of Cavill’s performance in the DCEU was severely toned down most of the time. The only time he got to go big was when Superman was angry, making the clearest memories of his character sneering at Batman and threatening him. Otherwise, Cavill was seemingly directed to look forlornly off into the distance for most of his scenes.

7 Superman Was Too Violent

Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice (2016)

Man of Steel ended with Cavill’s Superman destroying a good chunk of Metropolis. Although it was a clever course correction to use this as Bruce Wayne’s motivation to hate Superman in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, Superman himself never really toned down his violent tendencies in the sequel.

When he first meets Batman, he basically threatens to murder him, and he also threatens Lex Luthor’s life later on. This made Cavill’s Superman feel more in line with evil depictions of the character from stories like Injustice: Gods Among Us, as opposed to the caring hero that he usually is, since the action-packed nature of the DCEU’s storylines emphasized these conflicts.

6 Superman Really Only Cared About Personal Friends

Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice (2016)

Early on in Batman V Superman, Superman arrives to save Lois Lane from soldiers in the country she is reporting on. However, Clark doesn’t show up until only Lois is in trouble, leaving Jimmy Olsen to get killed in front of her. In general, Superman seems primarily inspired to save the people he cares about personally, looking grim or put upon when he is saving anyone else. This was also a trend in Man of Steel when Clark was very focused on saving his family or Lois, but destroyed half a city seemingly without regard for the innocent people around him.

5 The Destruction In Man Of Steel Was A Big Mistake

Man Of Steel (2013)

Several of the issues with Cavill’s Superman can be traced back to the final battle between him and General Zod in Man of Steel. During the fight, Superman punches Zod through entire buildings, destroying them and likely causing the deaths of innocent bystanders. It isn’t even like Superman is trying to save people and Zod keeps goading him back into the fight – when given a chance to go on the offensive, Clark does so very aggressively and with seemingly little regard for the destruction he is causing. Clark only saves a single person directly, and he does so by snapping Zod’s neck.

4 The Death Of Superman Had Very Little Impact

Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice (2016)

When Doomsday killed Superman in DC Comics, it was a major event. When he did it in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, it was barely an inconvenience. The film didn’t even let audiences think Superman was dead for more than a matter of minutes until the ending teased that he was still alive. This was one of several examples of the DCEU trying to rush big events, like trying to have a team-up movie before introducing half the team. This ultimately ended up falling flat because audiences barely knew or liked Superman before he died.

3 The Martha Scene Is Still Pretty Bad

Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice (2016)

The way Batman V Superman‘s big fight between the heroes ended is pretty infamous and has been the subject of ridicule for a while. Though thematically it makes sense that the way to humanize Superman to Batman was to mention his mother, the scene itself doesn’t have the emotional resonance that it should. Whether it’s Superman’s strange choice to say Martha when Batman doesn’t know who she is, or Batman shouting “Why did you say that name,” it just comes off too unnatural to connect with audiences on a human level.

In the end, it seems more like someone behind the scenes just happened to notice that both Batman and Superman had mothers named Martha and wanted to do something with that coincidence. It doesn’t pay off, especially if viewers don’t remember that Batman’s mother is also named Martha.

2 Man Of Steel Was Never Meant To Start The DCEU

Man Of Steel (2013)

When Man of Steel was made, it was originally intended to kick off a standalone series of Superman movies. Instead, DC decided to retroactively turn it into the first film of the DCEU, which caused some issues for Cavill’s character. Man of Steel‘s Superman wasn’t the traditional version of the hero that would make sense in a shared universe. His muted costume and broody attitude made him feel strange standing next to colorful characters like Flash or Aquaman. As such, Cavill’s version of Superman would likely have been better off staying in his series as planned.

1 Clark Kent Never Feels Human

Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice (2016)

Another side effect of Cavill being directed to look sad or wistful when saving people is that he doesn’t seem quite as human. Though Superman technically isn’t human, he was raised as one, and his humanity and warmth is conventionally a defining trait of the character. Instead, the DCEU films, particularly Batman V Superman, seem far more interested in framing him as a god. This makes the character hard to relate to in the same manner, and kills a lot of the tension in the film since viewers aren’t given as much reason to care about him.