What Really Convinced Henry Cavill To Make His Deadpool & Wolverine Cameo

Henry Cavill's casting in "Deadpool & Wolverine" may have been an outrageous cameo rumor at first. But as it turned out, the former "Superman" actor made a short yet impactful appearance as a Wolverine variant approached by Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) during his quest to replace his universe's version of the superhero and save their timeline from imminent destruction. Impressed by his physique, Deadpool walks up to the "Cavillrine" while the latter is working on his big bike, and he wastes no time, showering praise upon the variant and saying it "just feels right." However, the Merc with a Mouth is quickly and unceremoniously shown the door by the surly, cigar-chomping Cavillrine, and left to continue his search across the multiverse.

How did an actor associated with a rival cinematic universe sign on as one of the Marvel multiverse's many versions of the character popularized on the big screen by Hugh Jackman? In an interview with Variety, "Deadpool & Wolverine" director Shawn Levy opened up on the reason why Cavill easily agreed to the role. "If we're going to talk about him, we must call him by his actual credited name, the [Cavillrine], which Ryan coined," Levy said. "I knew it was undeniable as soon as Ryan came up with that term. He said "yes" right away because he knew it would be subversive and playful. It was also with a lot of affection for him and his body of work, and playing with his legacy as a DC hero now that he's appearing as a variant of a Marvel hero."

Speaking to Josh Horowitz on his "Happy Sad Confused" podcast, Shawn Levy shared more details on Henry Cavill's "Deadpool & Wolverine" cameo, revealing that the actor gave it his all while filming his ever-so-brief appearance in the movie despite the physical challenges he faced along the way. "He was jacked up, and he had that disgusting cigar in his mouth for hours, and he was fully in it," the director said. "I think he might have gotten sick to his stomach, if memory serves. It was a combination of oxygenated muscles, no actual oxygen going up into his nose, but he was a trooper and he was fabulous."

At the time of writing, Cavill hasn't said much about his role as the Cavillrine, but he did take to Instagram to post a screenshot of his character with a clever reference to a past controversy from his stint in what was then the DC Extended Universe. "To be safe, I shaved the moustache off for this one. Just the moustache," the actor's caption read. This is a reference to the Superman mustache controversy where Cavill, who was still rocking said facial hair from his time shooting "Mission: Impossible — Fallout," had the 'stache removed via CGI in "Justice League" with disastrous results.

Wolverine's death at the end of 2017's "Logan" served as a sad yet definitive way to close the book on the character, which is why Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige was initially against the idea of Hugh Jackman reprising his beloved role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Ultimately, Jackman agreed to join the cast of "Deadpool & Wolverine," but what if he opted to leave his character out of the multiversal escapade? Would it have made sense to hire someone else — possibly Henry Cavill — to play the iconic role, considering how closely Jackman is associated with it?

As Ryan Reynolds himself admitted in an interview with Collider, it would have been very difficult to recast Wolverine for Deadpool's third big-screen outing, though if he had to replace Jackman with another actor, Cavill would have made a great choice for the part. "It was the first day of shooting and it was born of the reality which is who on earth do you cast? I can't think of a more impossible and frustrating role to recast than Wolverine," the actor said. "I don't know. As an actor, it would be awful and intimidating, and you'd need to take it in a different way. But if you had to do it, and replace the guy who's made it canon in every way, shape, and form on-screen and off wasn't available, Henry Cavill would be pretty good!"