When one door closes, another one opens. After a week of, let's be honest, heartbreak for Henry Cavill following the crushing loss of his dream role as Superman, and his slightly acrimonious departure from his part as Geralt of Rivia in the Netflix series, The Witcher, it seemed as if luck wasn't on the poor fella's side. Worry not, however, folks. It seems you can't keep a good man down, and as Cavill seems to be a very good man, this makes the news that Amazon has secured the rights to Warhammer 40,000 most welcome indeed. It seems the studio intends to create what has been described as a "universe of Warhammer programming"—with Cavill attached both as a star and an executive producer.
As revealed on the Warhammer community website, the company released a statement regarding the deal, saying, “This is the first deal of its kind for Amazon Studios for IP of this scale, and it allows the company to utilize the title across its entertainment businesses. Henry Cavill (Man of Steel, Mission: Impossible – Fallout) is set to star in and executive produce the Warhammer 40,000 franchise across all Amazon Studios productions.”
Cavill is a perfect fit for this role, arguably as much as he ever was for Geralt or Kal-El. As a noted, and proud, nerd and gamer, with a particular obsession for role-playing games (RPGs for the cool kids here) and a love of building PCs, it seems an ideal marriage. The man spent lockdown painting Warhammer figurines, for goodness sake.
In a statement, Cavill added, “I have loved Warhammer since I was boy, making this moment truly special for me. The opportunity to shepherd this cinematic universe from its inception is quite the honour and the responsibility. I couldn’t be more grateful for all the hard work put in by Vertigo, Amazon and Games Workshop to make this happen. One step closer to making a nigh-on lifelong dream come true". On Instagram, he added, "Our first steps are to find our Filmmaker/Creator/Writer. Watch this space, my friends".
Warhammer 40,000 shares similarities with other RPGs like Dungeons and Dragons—dice are involved, for example - but the difference to many other RPGs is the beautifully constructed miniatures (like those Cavill spent his quarantine time with). The game's setting is 40,000 years in the future where things have gone quite bad for humanity, to be blunt. There is a never-ending war featuring aliens, gods, demons and magic. The plot is ripe for a visual feast, assuming Amazon lavishes it with the budget it deserves, akin to Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
It is pure fantasy, and right now, it's the exact sort of escape that Cavill deserves. Check out our interview the Cavill below: