Henry Cavill’s commitment to his cameo role in Marvel’s Deadpool & Wolverine left a lasting impression, both on and off the screen. Cavill, who played a variant of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine character named the ‘Cavillrine’, faced unexpected challenges during filming, as revealed by director Shawn Levy in an interview with The New York Times.
Cavill’s role was marked by a standout feature — his character consistently smoked a cigar. Levy shared that Cavill kept the cigar lit and in his mouth throughout the eight-hour shoot, which unfortunately resulted in the actor feeling very sick the following day. “Not only had that pumped-up muscular body but kept that cigar lit and in his mouth for the entirety of the shoot day. I remember hearing the next day that Henry was sick to his stomach because he had been inhaling cigar smoke for eight hours straight, but never once did he waver,” Levy recalled, highlighting Cavill’s professionalism.
The significance of Cavill’s casting extended beyond his physical portrayal. It also came at a poignant time shortly after the announcement that Cavill would no longer be playing Superman in the new DC universe, a role that would be taken over by David Corenswet in James Gunn’s upcoming Superman film set for release in July 2025.
“In the case of Henry, it was not long after everything went down with DC and word came that Henry was being replaced as Superman,” Levy noted. “Given that Deadpool is in constant conversation with culture, it felt like a great opportunity to first of all cast Henry Cavill in a part that he would kick ass at, but also to poke fun at that other comic-book-founded movie studio and play with some self-awareness there.”
Ryan Reynolds, who plays Deadpool, humorously dubbed Cavill’s character the ‘Cavillrine’, a name that quickly stuck and was used throughout the production. According to Levy in a separate interview with Variety, Reynolds’ inventive naming was immediately embraced by Cavill, who recognised the subversive and playful potential of the role. “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.”
Following the film’s release, Cavill took to social media to share his experience and a snapshot of himself as the Cavillrine, cigar included. The post resonated with fans, garnering over 3.1 million likes. Cavill also made a light-hearted reference to his past role as Superman, joking about his digitally removed moustache during the Justice League reshoots, proving his ability to engage with fans over aspects of his career with humour and grace.
Natalie is a big fan of anything related to movies, TV shows, games, and comics — you name it. When she’s not reading or geeking out about the latest shows on Netflix, she’s probably playing gacha and tabletop games, or daydreaming of meeting her idols.
