A Complete Ranking of Every Henry Cavill Movie
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Is there anybody in Hollywood who defines “main character energy” more than Henry Cavill?
From inhabiting rarified roles including Superman, Sherlock Holmes, and the Greek hero Theseus–not to mention the steely Geralt of Rivia in the Netflix series The Witcher–Cavill has ascended to the top of his game as one of the premier leading males of Hollywood.
When he’s not pumping iron or painting his Warhammer collection, Cavill lights up the screen playing characters of statuesque masculinity. The kicker is that his depths of talent allow him range far beyond a handsome face. He can be the world’s greatest hero, or the worst son of a b*tch you’ve ever met. It all depends on what filmmakers need him to be.
In celebration of his latest leading role in Guy Ritchie's The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which is, somehow, based on a true story, we’ve ranked all 23 of Cavill’s theatrical releases. For clarity, we’re omitting his TV roles including The Tudors and The Witcher, just because we want to focus on capital-M movies here.
Without further adieu, behold the filmography of Henry Cavill—a man who’s been it all.
Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005)
Mercifully, Henry Cavill plays such a small role in this godforsaken installment of the Hellraiser series that even Cavill completionists get a pass from seeing it. Stemming from an original script that was later reworked as a Hellraiser sequel, Cavill plays one of many doomed teenagers who hit up a party for gamers logged onto an online PC game only to be picked off one by one. Although there is novelty in seeing a young, pre-Superman Henry Cavill scream for his life as he’s gruesomely hung up like raw meat, even die-hard Hellraiser fans don’t have a lot of affection for this one.
Red Riding Hood (2006)
Ostensibly a harmless children's movie but feeling more like a money laundering scheme, Henry Cavill portrays “The Hunter” in this bizarre direct-to-video retelling of The Little Red Riding Hood. Through a novel framing device–in which a preteen girl (Morgan Thompson) hoping to attend a boy band concert gets stuck listening to her grandmother tell fairy tales–the story of Little Red Riding Hood as we know it gets disrupted by stray pieces of the modern real world, like lost-and-found iPods and 24-hour cable news. With low-rent production value resulting in visuals that barely rival karaoke booths, Red Riding Hood is a must-see if only to remember how often the biggest movie stars like Henry Cavill still come from humble beginnings.
Black Adam (2022)
Dwayne Johnson promised that the hierarchy of power in the DC Universe would change. With a measly box office gross just below $400 million, his words hardly shook the struggling (and now folded) DCEU. Though Black Adam is first and foremost a vanity project for Dwayne Johnson, the former WWE champ clearly hoped to battle Superman down the road and thus featured Henry Cavill back in the role of Superman–albeit in a ludicrous and brief post-credits scene–after Cavill was discarded earlier post-Justice League. In what must have been freaking maddening for Cavill, he was again dismissed by DC after Black Adam failed to electrify audiences and the studio chose to rebuild from the ground up, including a new Superman. Whether we’re talking the caliber of Henry Cavill movies or just movies overall, Black Adam keeps a low spot, being a movie crushed by the weight of lofty expectations.
Justice League (2017)
The infamously troubled production of Justice League, which included a change in directors (from Zack Snyder to Joss Whedon) and deep executive meddling, resulted in one of the most polished dung heaps ever put to screen. Picking up from the divisive Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which first pitted Henry Cavill’s Superman against Ben Affleck’s Batman, Justice League revolves around Batman working to assemble the heroes of the DC Universe–Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), Cyborg (Ray Fisher), and The Flash (Ezra Miller)–to save Earth from an incoming alien threat. First up on their agenda: Bring Superman back from the dead. Hampered by tonal inconsistency, compromised visions, and lethargic performances from actors who weren’t having a good time, Justice League proves that even the full strength of a superhero universe sometimes isn’t enough to save the day.
Laguna (2001)
In his film debut, an approximately 17-year-old Henry Cavill stars as Thomas, an Italian-American orphan whose parents were murdered by the mafia. After growing up, he’s sent to live in Italy and work at his family’s hotel, where he begins his pursuit of vengeance while also being drawn to his uncle’s mystifying wife. Laguna, also titled Hotel Laguna or Vendetta depending on the release market, features Cavill demonstrating remarkable proficiency in his craft at a very young age, along with some rather scenic walkthroughs of Italian streets. Despite its limitations as a discounted melodrama, its steamy forbidden romance elevates Laguna to be more than a novelty.
The Cold Light of Day (2012)
The uninspired The Cold Light of Day marks the start of Bruce Willis in his twilight era, in which budget productions feature the famed actor for a fraction of its total length but enjoy the privilege of putting his name and face on the DVD jacket. Still, it’s a sturdy enough vehicle for Henry Cavill to hold his own as a maturing leading man. Cavill stars as a business consultant from San Francisco who is too distracted to enjoy a family vacation in Spain. After his family is kidnapped, he learns a stunning truth about his estranged father (Willis) and races all around Madrid to rescue his loved ones. Although Cavill proves himself worthy of anchoring movies, The Cold Light of Day is painfully absent of pizzazz to truly satisfy genre junkies.
Night Hunter (2018)
Night Hunter features a formidable Henry Cavill and surrounds him with an equally appealing cast—we’re talking Ben Kingsley, Alexandra Daddario, Stanley Tucci, and Nathan Fillion. But its maddening lack of aspirations keep it from breaking free of its suffocating confines of mediocrity. Sir Ben Kingsley plays a vigilante who targets child predators who teams up with a determined police detective (Cavill) to rescue his young ward from a serial killer. Despite the best efforts from a sterling collection of actors, Night Hunter doesn’t leave any lasting impression. Its contrived filmmaking renders it indistinguishable from countless other mid-grade thrillers.
Argylle (2024)
Winking to Henry Cavill’s history as a would-be James Bond (he was Casino Royale director Martin Campbell’s choice to play the part over Daniel Craig), Cavill stars as the impossibly handsome “Agent Argylle” in Matthew Vaughn’s bombastic blockbuster for Apple TV+. Socially awkward author Elly Conway (Bryce Dallas Howard) is whisked away by real secret agents who reveal to her that her best-selling spy novels aren’t just accurate to real life, but downright prophetic. Cavill is boatloads of fun as a satirical pastiche of Bond and Bourne, and on some level Argylle solidifies Matthew Vaughn as a Hollywood director with Bollywood sensibilities. But Argylle is simply too noisy and too over-produced for any of its sharp wits to feel edgy.
Whatever Works (2009)
In this bizarre comedy written and directed by Woody Allen, Larry David fills in for Allen’s obvious self-insert protagonist as a cynical, cantankerous genius in New York City who reluctantly takes in, and then marries, a naive 21-year-old runaway from Mississippi named Melody (Evan Rachel Wood). At the midway point, Henry Cavill enters the frame as a charming, more age-appropriate love interest for Melody; Melody’s mother (Patricia Clarkson) aggressively sets them up to peel her daughter away from her geriatric husband. Regrettably, Allen is a talented writer with a knack for memorable characters who spit out catchy dialogue. But Whatever Works radiates a foul vibe, and is just too derivative of Allen’s own past and better works to strongly recommend.
Man of Steel (2013)
It’s the summer blockbuster that launched Henry Cavill to the stratosphere of Hollywood movie stardom, but Man of Steel isn’t bulletproof. Directed by Zack Snyder and engineered as the launchpad for the DC Extended Universe, Man of Steel stars Cavill as the iconic Superman (and his alter ego Clark Kent) in a baroque imagining of the comic icon’s origin story. Across its bloated runtime, Man of Steel sometimes flirts with sublime brilliance, from Hans Zimmer's expansive score to its gorgeous realization of Superman’s pulp sci-fi underpinnings. Cavill, too, flexes his might as a believable, albeit vanilla bland, Man of Tomorrow. If only Man of Steel weren’t so ashamed by the fact it’s a Superman movie, not to mention a plot that moves much slower than a speeding bullet.
Tristan + Isolde (2006)
File this under: “Henry Cavill’s In That One!?” Disliked by critics but loved by millennials who caught it at the right age to fall for starcrossed romantic epics, Tristan & Isolde is a dishy retelling of the medieval legend. James Franco, still fresh from his newfound stardom via the Spider-Man films, plays Tristan, an English boy who becomes smitten for beautiful Irish princess Isolde (Sophia Myles) whilst their people wage war. Henry Cavill appears in a supporting role as Melot, Tristan’s adoptive brother who harbors jealousy over Tristan’s favoritism by his uncle (Rufus Sewell). Cavill enjoys hefty screen time, but his character ultimately matters little to the story. Understandable, as the title isn’t Tristan & Isolde & Melo. Besides James Franco’s prominence, Tristan & Isolde has aged impressively as a lovely and sincere Hollywood romance.
Stardust (2007)
In this delightful, star-studded romantic fantasy, Daredevil’s Charlie Cox stars as a 19th century English boy who tries to retrieve a fallen star to win the heart of Victoria (Sienna Miller), only to find the star is herself a young woman (Claire Danes) pursued by evil witches. Buoyed by an outsized cast that includes Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert De Niro, Ian McKellan, Mark Strong, Peter O’Toole, and Ricky Gervais, Stardust is far more engrossing and effervescent than its assumed appearances as a The Princess Bride copycat. For the purposes of this list, Stardust loses points on the grounds that Cavill is barely in it, in a blink-and-you-miss-him capacity as Victoria’s boyfriend. But for the nanoseconds he’s on screen, Cavill is dynamite as an arrogant aristocrat who outmuscles poor Charlie Cox. No surprise to learn that Daredevil is little match for Superman.
Enola Holmes (2020)
At first glance, it’s easy to dismiss Enola Holmes as streaming content poppycock. And Henry Cavill never feels completely locked-in as Enola’s older and more famous brother, Sherlock Holmes. (If we’re being honest, Cavill comes across more like a generic Victorian gentleman than an eccentric, cunning, and sometimes socially offensive detective.) But Enola Holmes is impressively capable for all-ages entertainment, with Stranger Things’ Millie Bobby Brown wielding enough charisma to inspire the young and amuse the old alike. While the plot is a tad overcooked, and Cavill gets woefully little to do as Sherlock besides lecture Enola and sit with his nose in newspapers, Enola Holmes’s immersive period production design and resonance as a coming-of-age adventure means it’s no mystery how and why it’s lots of fun.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
A showdown that comic book die-hards thought would only happen in their imaginations, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a major franchise tentpole, again directed by Zack Snyder, drenched in pitch black oil. An amalgamation of a few seminal DC Comics texts–namely Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns and the crossover event “The Death of Superman”–casts a looming shadow over Batman v Superman, transmogrifying what could and maybe should be colorful escapism into a paralyzing sand-blasted nightmare of politics, xenophobia, and humankind’s inability to prepare for apocalypse. During its release in 2016, Batman v Superman endured negative reviews from critics and a divisive response among general audiences. Years later and in hindsight, it’s aged well, being at the very least a superhero movie with singular vision. Seek out the home release “Ultimate Cut,” which affords Cavill more screen time as a gumshoe journalist looking into Batman’s vigilante activities that has The Daily Planet quietly spooked.
I Capture The Castle (2003)
In this pleasing adaptation of the 1948 novel by Dodie Smith, a teenager (Romola Garai) in lives in near poverty with her family in circa 1930s England. She comes of age and harbors feelings for her family’s affluent American landlord (Henry Thomas) as she deflects affections from a strapping young handyman (Henry Cavill), who is amusingly described as looking like “all the Greek gods rolled into one.” Putting aside an almost fateful resemblance between a young Cavill and Christopher Reeve here, I Capture the Castle is a modestly entertaining young adult period romance (if you’re into them, at least) that feels a few steps above standard-issue BBC dramas. It may not enchant everyone, but I Capture the Castle is worth spending time with if you have a soft spot for Jane Austen-type dalliances.
Blood Creek (2009)
Largely due to the infamy of his Batman movies, folks tend to forget the late Joel Schumacher as an artist capable of darkness. One of his more forgotten and underrated films is Blood Creek, a sinewy supernatural splatter horror inspired by urban legends of Adolf Hitler’s interest in the occult. Henry Cavill stars as an EMT who reunites with his lost and presumed dead brother (fellow DC multiverse brethren Dominic Purcell). He is dragged into a mission of revenge against a German family, who are not only older than they appear, but keep a macabre secret locked away on their farm. It’s not quite “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre meets Inglorious Basterds,” but it’s close. Blood Creek struggles to be both a gothic thriller and a grindhouse slasher at once, but it is attractive as an exhibition of both Cavill and Schumacher dwelling in a creative space that feels thick with evil.
The Count of Monte Cristo (2002)
Based on the classic 1844 novel about love, justice, mercy, and redemption, Kevin Reynolds helms this magnificent throwback to yesteryear’s swashbuckler pictures starring Jim Caviezel as Edmond Dantès. Henry Cavill has a minor role as Albert Mondengo, who is but a pawn in Edmond’s elaborate plan to embed himself in Albert’s family. (There’s a bigger reveal regarding Albert’s true parentage, but it’s only a spoiler if you slept through all of high school English.) Like his other early movies, Cavill takes a backseat to other actors whose characters actually drive the story, but The Count of Monte Cristo is a generally splendid recreation of the story despite its changes. Fun fact: Cavill’s performance as Albert was a major inspiration to Twilight author Stephanie Meyer. She modeled Edward Cullen after Cavill’s Albert Mondengo, and expressed on her blog hope for Cavill to play Edward in the Twilight movie. By the time production was in motion, however, Cavill was already too old to play a convincing teenager. (Never mind that Edward is technically, like, a hundred or whatever.)
Sand Castle (2017)
We’ll state upfront that Glen Powell name-dropping our fine publication in this film has no bearing on its placement here whatsoever. Anyway: Ever wanted to see Superman adorn himself with Punisher skulls? In Netflix’s Sand Castle, directed by Fernando Coimbra, Cavill appears as a square-jawed captain of the U.S. Special Forces, carrying an uncanny Southern twang in his speaking voice. Despite Cavill’s top billing, he doesn’t have as much screen time compared to leads Nicholas Hoult and Logan Marshall-Green, playing American soldiers during the Iraq War who are tasked with restoring water for villagers in Baqubah. Sand Castle struggles to say anything new that other, better post-War on Terror pictures haven’t already carefully meditated on, but its damning critique of America’s careless imperialism ensures it keeps your attention all the way until the credits roll.
Enola Holmes 2 (2022)
Basically more of everything that made its predecessor a wonderful surprise, Enola Holmes 2 brings back both Millie Bobby Brown and Henry Cavill, with their respective characters Enola and Sherlock finally teaming up on a case rooted in the real-life matchgirls’s strike of 1888. In the sequel, Enola seizes the chance to step out of her brother’s shadow when she’s hired to find a factory girl’s missing sister. With a stirring plot centered around themes of sisterhood and legacy, Enola Holmes 2 is a rollicking good time that proves some sequels are in fact capable of standing on their own – and it can sometimes look positively elementary.
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024)
Henry Cavill reunited with Guy Ritchie (after 2015's The Man From U.N.C.L.E.—more on that in just a bit) to do his best Brad Pitt-in-Inglorious Basterds impress for the zany, violent, and somehow-based-on-a-true-story film The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare. Cavill leads the way here as the ringleader of a team of very dangerous misfits, who kind of serve as Winston Churchill's personal Suicide Squad on a secret WWII mission against Hitler's forces. While it's easy to get distracted by some of the supporting cast—Eiza Gonzalez is wonderful as usual and Alan Ritchson spends the entirety movie being very large, wearing small glasses, and killing Nazis with a bow and arrow—Cavill uses his leading man charm (and a little bit of off-color eccentricity) to anchor what's ultimately quite a fun time at the movies.
Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)
Years after its dismal theatrical release, and after deafening online campaigning from hardcore fans, Warner Bros. re-enlisted Zack Snyder to finish what he started: Justice League. With its lengthy four-hour runtime (no matter, what with it being a streaming release for the then-named HBO Max), Zack Snyder’s Justice League omits all of Joss Whedon’s tonally zany additions and restores Snyder’s more somber and more ornamented interpretation of godlike superhumans uniting as one. Snyder was also afforded resources to shoot material he hadn’t been able to before, including new scenes with additional DC characters Joker, Deathstroke, and–spoilers!–the Martian Manhunter. More than just a “director’s cut” or an “extended version,” Zack Snyder’s Justice League is truly a different movie, one that posits the virtues of faith in the impossible.
Immortals (2011)
The worst thing about Immortals is that it came out in the wrong era. Released in 2011, the world was still reeling from the tectonic quakes left by 300 when it arrived, being a fantastical sword-and-sandal flick about the divine Greek hero Theseus (played here with aplomb by, who else, Henry Cavill). While the movie is unmistakably post-300, bearing likeminded fetishes for hard muscular bodies and painterly color palettes of auburn and gold, Immortals has aged like fine wine in a time when so many mega-budget blockbusters feel less ambitious and necessarily austere. Standing against Cavill’s Theseus and his allies is the brooding, ruthless King Hyperion, played by a hypnotic Mickey Rourke. It’s almost a crime that Immortals alone didn’t make Henry Cavill a worldwide star overnight.
The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (2015)
Easily Henry Cavill’s most stylish movie to date, the actor co-leads with Armie Hammer in this feature film rendition of the ‘60s classic spy-fi TV series that once upon a time rivaled Mission: Impossible and The Avengers (no, not the superheroes). Cavill plays the role of dashing CIA agent and analog to James Bond, Napoleon Solo, who reluctantly teams with super intelligent Illya Kuryakin (Hammer) of the KGB. Joining them is the gorgeous daughter of a scientist, Gabby Teller, played by Alicia Vikander. Together the three must stop the detonation of nukes that will heat up the Cold War. It’s not Guy Ritchie’s sharpest movie in his filmography, but The Man From U.N.C.L.E. is pure escapist entertainment and serious wardrobe inspo that had/has all the makings of a would-be Hollywood franchise. It’s all the more upsetting that it failed to ignite one.
Mission: Impossible — Fallout (2018)
Cast aside any and all smirk towards Henry Cavill’s mustache (and the fact that Warner Bros. spent millions in VFX work to cover it up during Superman reshoots for Justice League). Not only does the man rock it well, but Cavill feels so at ease in the part of a brawny counter to Tom Cruise’s leaner, nimble Ethan Hunt. Though the 2018 installment of Mission: Impossible feels sandwiched by its game-changing 2015 predecessor and exquisite 2023 follow-up Dead Reckoning Part One, it’s hard to feel unimpressed by Fallout. As Tom Cruise hangs off helicopters and skydives his way into Paris nightclubs, Cavill keeps an imposing presence, with a most memorable bathroom fist fight with an equally iconic “arm pump” (which was actually Cavill physically shaking loose from physical exhaustion). Mission: Impossible – Fallout may not be Henry Cavill’s starring vehicle, but it’s without a doubt one hell of a ride.
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