Henry Cavill Finds Playing Superman & Geralt More Stressful Than Sherlock Holmes

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Henry Cavill Finds Playing Superman & Geralt More Stressful Than Sherlock Holmes

Henry Cavill finds playing Sherlock Holmes to be much less stressful than Superman or Geralt of Rivia. Cavill rose to fame when he was cast as the DCEU's Superman for 2013's Man of Steel. Though the film was met with a mixed response, fans grew to appreciate Cavill's performance as Clark Kent over the course of additional films like Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League. Since then, though, Cavill's DCEU future has remained a large question mark. Luckily, the actor found another memorable role to take on in the meantime, portraying monster hunter Geralt for Netflix's The Witcher.

Cavill's newest role just so happens to be as well-known as Superman himself: Sherlock Holmes. For Netflix's Enola Holmes, Cavill is the latest actor to play the iconic detective, though the film is actually centered on his brilliant younger sister (Millie Bobby Brown). As this Sherlock is a bit different than ones that came before, there's actually been some controversy over him; the estate of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has sued Netflix for depicting a more emotional Sherlock. Nevertheless, fans were both surprised and excited to see Cavill become Sherlock for Enola Holmes.

Cavill recently spoke about his experience playing Sherlock with Collider and dug into the pressure that comes with portraying such iconic figures like him, Superman, and Geralt. Interestingly, Sherlock was the character he felt the least amount of pressure for, and that is due to his attachment to the source material, not the external pressure. "It’s more about me –certainly with Superman and The Witcher – those are characters I grew up with and I love and I really, really want to represent in the most source-accurate way possible. That for me was a massive thing and still is a massive thing," Cavill explained. However, when it came to Sherlock, "I wasn’t reading the books of Sherlock Holmes necessarily."

Cavill went on to explain how he's often the one on set to question everything based on his knowledge of the source material. Since he was less familiar with Sherlock, though, he managed to sidestep that. "I managed to absolve myself of this duty which I put on myself which is being a law loyalist; it’s always about the details," Cavill said. Those who have watched Enola Holmes might agree that Cavill's Sherlock is far different than past iterations, and that's actually a remarkable thing. After all, Sherlock has been portrayed more times onscreen than any other literary character, so providing a different spin on him is an impressive creative risk.

If fans and Cavill have their way, he could end up taking on another iconic role: James Bond. Cavill was previously in contention for the role, but it ended up going to Daniel Craig. However, with Craig vacating the role, it's a mystery as to who will fill his shoes. Cavill is a popular pick, and he himself has voiced interest in it. His Superman future is still unclear, and Cavill won't comment on it. However, between The Witcher and a possible Enola Holmes 2, Cavill might already have his hands full. Only time will tell what major role he'll take next.