Move over, Geralt: there's a fantastic new project tailor-made for Henry Cavill.
The former Superman star (and soon to be former Witcher star) is teaming up with Amazon Studios to develop a cinematic universe based on Games Workshop's iconic Warhammer 40,000 (40k) property. Even better, Cavill is set to star in and executive produce a series of movies, TV shows, and other media centered around the board game franchise.
Taking to Instagram, Cavill couldn't contain his excitement at the confirmation. After all, Cavill is a huge Warhammer fan, so it stands to reason that he's motivated to help create a live-action Warhammer 40k universe.
Confirmed via an official announcement posted on the Warhammer Community website (opens in a new tab), Cavill will help oversee all Warhammer 40k productions at Amazon Studios. Cavill will enlist the help of Vertigo Entertainment, the studio overseen by Roy Lee and Natalie Viscuso, whose previous projects include The Departed, Barbarian, the Lego franchise and the It series.
It's unclear how many projects are in development, or which one Cavill will star in. We've reached out to Amazon for more information, including whether its live-action and potentially animated Warhammer 40k deals will be exclusive to its Prime Video streaming service. We will update this article if we have any news.
Speaking as part of the reveal, Amazon Studios and MGM Studios Head Jennifer Salke said: "Warhammer 40,000 has captured the imagination of fans of all ages, walks of life and from around the world. We are delighted to be working with Henry, Vertigo Entertainment and Games Workshop in our Amazon Entertainment businesses about this brilliant and immersive franchise that our global customers will be able to experience for years to come."
For the uninitiated: Warhammer 40k is a tabletop role-playing game (RPG) set in the distant future. In the franchise, humanity stands on the brink of its brightest future, or potentially its darkest age. With multiple threats from traitors to the human empire, as well as menacing and vicious alien races, and malevolent gods, Warhammer 40k is packed with a rich story and many fun, cool and dangerous characters that could be a perfect fit for the Amazon Cinematic game. universe.
The reveal comes less than two days after it was confirmed that Cavill would not be returning as Superman in James Gunn and Peter Safran's rebooted DC Cinematic Universe (DCU). Meanwhile, Cavill won't be back as Geralt in Rivia in The Witcher season 4, with Liam Hemsworth set to reprise that role in one of Netflix's best shows (in our opinion, anyway).
As such, The Witcher season 3 will mark the end of Cavill's tenure as everyone's favorite monster slayer. This prompted fans to angrily set up a Change.org petition (opens in a new tab), calling on Netflix to fire the fantasy series' creative team and retain Cavill's services. In the wake of this fan fury, Witcher showrunner Lauren Hissrich exclusively told TechRadar that she fully understands "why the fans are hurt, but I hope they continue to watch the series after this season."
With Cavill not reprising his most iconic roles, many were wondering what the future held for actress Enola Holmes and Mission Impossible: Fallout, including us. Yesterday (Dec 15) we suggested that Cavill consider starring in or creating a live-action series or movie based on Warhammer 40k, so we're glad we got it right.
Although he won't be returning as Superman or Geralt, Cavill has a lot going for him. In addition to The Witcher season 3, which arrives in mid-2023, he will also star in the Apple TV Plus spy movie Argylle, which is set to premiere next year. Cavill will also appear in the as-yet-untitled Highlander reboot and a film adaptation of the Australian novel The Rosie Project.
For more news and information on Cavill-related productions, check out our review of The Witcher: Blood Origin spinoff show, or how to watch the DC Extended Universe movies in order.
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