| This article has an unclear citation style. The references used may be made clearer with a different or consistent style of citation, footnoting, or external linking. (November 2012)

API
Cavill at the 2011 San Diego Comic Con
Born | Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill (1983-05-05) 5 May 1983 (age 30) Jersey, Channel Islands
Occupation | Actor
Years active | 2001?? present

Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill (born 5 May 1983) is a British actor. He has appeared in the films The Count of Monte Cristo, Stardust and Immortals, and played the role of Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, on the Showtime series The Tudors, from 2007 until 2010. He has been cast as Superman in the 2013 film Man of Steel.

## Early life[edit]

Cavill was born on the island of Jersey in the Channel Islands, the fourth of five boys. His mother, Marianne, works as a secretary in a bank, and his father, Colin, is a stockbroker.[1] He was educated at St. Michael's Preparatory School in Saint Saviour, Jersey before attending Stowe School,[2] a boarding school in Buckinghamshire, England. He began acting in school plays during prep school,[3] and has said that if he had not become an actor, he would have joined the army[2] or gone to university to study ancient history, specifically Egyptology.[3][4]

## Career[edit]

Cavill in 2009

Cavill had his first film role in Kevin Reynolds' 2002 adaptation The Count of Monte Cristo. He went on to star in Laguna (2001), and afterwards appeared in BBC?s The Inspector Lynley Mysteries (2002), the TV film Goodbye Mr. Chips (2002), and the TV series Midsomer Murders (2003). In 2003 he had a supporting role in I Capture the Castle, followed by Red Riding Hood (2004), Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005), and Tristan Isolde (2006). He had a minor role alongside Sienna Miller and Ben Barnes in Matthew Vaughn's adaptation of Stardust (2007).

From 2007 to 2010, Cavill had a leading role in Showtime's television series The Tudors as Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk. The series was well-received: it was nominated for a Golden Globe in 2007 and won an Emmy in 2008. Cavill credits the show with bolstering his career: "It?s done the most for me to date. [ . . . ] Now that there's an audience somewhere in America that?s aware of who I am, I have more sell-ability, because of The Tudors."[5] Entertainment Weekly named him the "Most Dashing Duke" and praised his work on The Tudors for displaying "charm, depth and a killer bod".[6]

Cavill had been set to star as Superman in director McG?s 2004 film Superman: Flyby. However, McG pulled out of the project and direction was taken over by director Bryan Singer, who recast Brandon Routh as the lead.[7][8] Cavill was also the cause of a write-in effort from fans to see him cast as Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005).[9] The role eventually went to Robert Pattinson. Stephenie Meyer, author of the Twilight series, was outspokenly in favor of Cavill playing the character of Edward Cullen in the Twilight film,[10] calling him her "perfect Edward".[11] By the time production of the film began, however, Cavill was too old to play the character,[11][12] and again the role went to Robert Pattinson. In 2005, Cavill was a final contender for the role of James Bond in Casino Royale.[13] The producers and director Martin Campbell were torn between him and Daniel Craig; reportedly Campbell supported Cavill but the producers preferred an older Bond.[7][14] Ultimately Craig landed the role. In their December 2005 issue, Empire magazine dubbed Cavill the "Unluckiest Man in Hollywood" for this series of near-misses.[2] Despite reports that he was a contender for Batman in Batman Begins, Cavill confirmed that he never auditioned for nor was offered the role.[7][13]

In early 2008, Cavill became a model/spokesman for Dunhill fragrances.[15] The television ad featured a suited-up Cavill walking through the Union Jack, before mounting a helicopter.[16] A second television ad featured Cavill driving a car through a deserted London at night, and meeting with a young woman.[17] He starred in director Joel Schumacher's horror film Blood Creek (2008) and in 2009 he had a minor role in Woody Allen?s comedy film Whatever Works.

Cavill played the lead role of Theseus in Tarsem Singh's mythological, big-budget special effects film Immortals, released November 11, 2011.[18] In 2012, Cavill starred alongside Bruce Willis in The Cold Light of Day. On January 30, 2011, it was announced that Cavill had been cast in the role of Clark Kent/Superman in director Zack Snyder's Man of Steel.[19] Snyder called Cavill "the perfect choice to don the cape and S shield."[20][21] Entertainment media applauded Henry Cavill on his road to success.[22][23] With Christian Bale cast as Batman, and Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man, Cavill became the third British actor to portray an American comic book superhero.[24] On being chosen for the role, Cavill commented, "In the pantheon of superheroes, Superman is the most recognized and revered character of all time, and I am honoured to be a part of his return to the big screen."[24]

## Personal life[edit]

On 4 May 2011, his girlfriend, showjumper Ellen Whitaker, announced their engagement.[25][26][27] On 18 August 2012, it was reported that the pair had broken up.[28]

## Filmography[edit]

Film and television
Year | Title | Role | Notes
--- | --- | --- | ---
2001 | Laguna | Thomas Aprea |
2002 | The Count of Monte Cristo | Albert Mondego |
2002 | The Inspector Lynley Mysteries | Chas Quilter | TV series (1 episode: Well Schooled Murder)
2002 | Goodbye, Mr. Chips | Soldier Colley | TV movie
2003 | Midsomer Murders | Simon Mayfield | TV series (1 episode: The Green Man)
2003 | I Capture the Castle | Stephen Colley |
2005 | Hellraiser: Hellworld | Mike |
2006 | Tristan Isolde | Melot |
2007 | Red Riding Hood | The Hunter |
2007 | Stardust | Humphrey |
2007 | The Tudors | Charles Brandon | TV series (38 episodes)
2009 | Blood Creek | Evan Marshall |
2009 | Whatever Works | Randy James |
2011 | Immortals | Theseus |
2012 | The Cold Light of Day | Will Shaw |
2013 | Man of Steel | Clark Kent/Superman | Post-production

## References[edit]

1. ^ Barker, Andy. "Regarding Henry." Evening Standard 24 Oct. 2008: 49?53. Print. Retrieved 27 Nov. 2010 from Henry Cavill Fan gallery, http://www.henrycavillfan.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=84 and from Henry Cavill Online, http://henry.intensevibe.net/articles/005.html
2. ^ a b c Cook, Xerxes. "Henry le Magnifique." Upstreet 10 Jun. 2009: 36?41. Print. Retrieved 27 Nov. 2010 from http://picasaweb.google.com/HWDCGallery/Upstreet#
3. ^ a b ?The Tudors: A Sit-down with Henry Cavill.? Filmed interview. Retrieved 27 Nov. 2010 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ip-OAY5sBPcfeature=related
4. ^ Paul, Chi. "The Tudor's Henry Cavill: Sexiest Courtier Alive!" People. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from https://picasaweb.google.com/HWDCGallery/PeopleMagazine#5497186965169472818
5. ^ "The Tudors Interview." Filmed interview. Retrieved 18 Feb. 2011 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ogLCSBz-0Y, 4:01 to 4:03, 5:07 to 5:15
6. ^ Svetkey, Benjamin, Jeff Jensen, Dan Snierson, Ken Tucker, Lynette Rice, Chris Nashawaty, Karen Valby, Dave Karger, Adam B. Vary, and Missy Schwartz. "Must List 2009: TV." Entertainment Weekly 26 Jun. 2009. Print. Retrieved 18 Feb. 2011 from Entertainment Weekly online, http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20286014,00.html and from https://picasaweb.google.com/HWDCGallery/EWWeekly#5497148461642257586
7. ^ a b c Jensen, Jeff "Doc". "Superman Soars Again." Entertainment Weekly 25 Feb. 2011: 54?57. Print. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from https://picasaweb.google.com/HWDCGallery/SupermanManOfSteel#5574728778586377810
8. ^ Wigler, Josh. "'Tudors' Star Henry Cavill Was So Close To Playing Superman, He Even Wore The Cape!" mtv.com. MTV, 6 May 2009. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://splashpage.mtv.com/2009/05/06/tudors-star-henry-cavill-was-so-close-to-playing-superman-he-even-wore-the-cape/
9. ^ "Henry Cavill for Cedric Diggory." Henry Cavill at IntenseVibe.org. IntenseVibe, 22 Feb. 2008. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.intensevibe.org/index.php?topic=855.0
10. ^ Morris, W. M. "Interview: Twilight author Stephenie Meyer." A Motley Vision. A Motley Vision, 26 Oct. 2005. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.motleyvision.org/2005/interview-twilight-author-stephanie-meyer/
11. ^ a b Meyer, Stephenie. "Twilight the Movie (archives)." stepheniemeyer.com. The Official Website of Stephenie Meyer, 7 Jul. 2007. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/movie_archives.html
12. ^ "Henry Cavill Talks Twilight." By Josh Horowitz. MTV Movies. Filmed interview. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdiCf1I2YzM
13. ^ a b "Henry Cavill Interview." Filmed interview. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTLmPZH8G10
14. ^ "David Arnold discusses screentesting the new James Bond, and Daniel Craig's competition." MI6. MI6, 22 Mar. 2007. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.mi6.co.uk/news/index.php?itemid=4863
15. ^ Dunhill London. Dunhill. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.dunhillfragrances.com/en/dunhill-london/bio.asp
16. ^ "Dunhill London Fragrance with Henry Cavill." Television ad. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKqFMxdN3Pc
17. ^ "Henry Cavill?? Dunhill Black." Television ad. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5s3Y1NA29tAfeature=related
18. ^ Billington, Alex. "First Look: Tarsem Singh's 'Immortals' Epic with Henry Cavill." firstshowing.net. First Showing, 17 May 2010. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.firstshowing.net/2010/first-look-tarsem-singhs-immortals-epic-with-henry-cavill/
19. ^ "Henry Cavill to Play Superman." superherohype.com. SuperHeroHype, 30 Jan. 2011. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.superherohype.com/news/articles/125177-henry-cavill-to-play-superman
20. ^ Venutolo, Anthony. "Henry Cavill cast as Superman in Zack Snyder's reboot." NJ 30 Jan. 2011. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.nj.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2011/01/henry_cavill_cast_as_superman.html
21. ^ Ditzian, Eric. "'Superman' Star Henry Cavill Will Be 'Amazing', Christopher Nolan Says." mtv.com. MTV, 1 Feb. 2011. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1657029/superman-star-henry-cavill-will-be-amazing-christopher-nolan.jhtml
22. ^ Ditzian, Eric. "'Superman' Star Henry Cavill Had Long Road To Landing The Role." MTV.com 31 Jan. 2011. Web. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2011 from http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1656948/henry-cavill-superman.jhtml
23. ^ CBSNews.com / CelebrityCircuit. "'Henry Cavill: The Next Superman" CBSNews.com / CelebrityCircuit 31 Jan. 2011. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-31749_162-20030010-10391698.html?tag=contentMain;contentBody
24. ^ a b "The Brit invasion: Actor Henry Cavill joins Christian Bale and Andrew Garfield to play an American superhero". Daily Mail. Retrieved 27 June 2012
25. ^ "Superman Star Henry Cavill Is Engaged". People.com. (4 May 2011)
26. ^ "Ellen Gets Engaged to Henry!". ellenwhitaker.com. (4 May 2011)
27. ^ Superman actor to marry showjumper, Belfast Telegraph, 4 May 2011
28. ^ Nicholl, Katie (18 August 2012). "Showjumper Ellen Whitaker splits from Superman Henry Cavill as he heads to Hollywood". Daily Mail. Retrieved 19 October 2012.

## External links[edit]

- API at the Internet Movie Database

Authority control | VIAF: 163733385

Persondata
Name | Cavill, Henry
Alternative names | Cavill, Henry William Dalgliesh (birth name)
Short description | British actor
Date of birth | 5 May 1983
Place of birth | Jersey, Channel Islands, UK
Date of death |
Place of death |