Why is 'Superman' Henry Cavill willing to play second fiddle to a 16-year-old actress?

Why is 'Superman' Henry Cavill willing to play second fiddle to a 16-year-old actress?
PHOTO: Instagram/henrycavill

With his chiseled jawline, rugged good looks, buff physique, and that iconic Superman curl, Henry Cavill is the perfect Man of Steel.

And like that DC Comics superhero, the A-lister is humble, too. Like how he is more than willing to play second fiddle to 16-year-old Millie Bobby Brown — who rose to fame as Eleven on sci-fi horror series Stranger Things — on Netflix's Enola Holmes.

The show is a film adaptation of the book series that follow the adventures of Sherlock's younger sister. Apart from Millie (who plays Enola) and Henry (who plays Sherlock), it also boasts big names such as Sam Claflin, Fiona Shaw, and Helena Bonham Carter.

In a Zoom interview with regional media yesterday (Sept 22), AsiaOne asked Henry why a big star like himself would consider taking on a supporting role in the film. Though he plays Sherlock, the character doesn't really get to flex the brilliant mind and deductive skills that we're used to seeing in other onscreen iterations.

The 37-year-old British actor replied: "I'm a fan of Millie Bobby Brown. I think she's extraordinary. I've watched her stuff and then the opportunity to play in the movie supporting her character — especially with such a good script and with such a fantastic cast as well as a director like Harry Bradbeer — it was a no-brainer for me really. It was a very easy decision to make.

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"I jumped at the opportunity because there's a really important message in this movie as well as it being a feel-good movie. I've played a lot of heavier, more serious characters over the years and it's nice to play a character with some lightness. A character who is reflective of the other aspects of my personality as well which we don't often get to see very much on film."

Most importantly, he reiterated, is the fact that he gets to support a "really, really good" actress like Millie because it's "a lot of fun".

He didn't appear like he was trying to be polite.

As the interview went on, it was very apparent that Henry is genuinely full of admiration for the young star and on more than one occasion, said that she is an actress and a promising producer who has "a bright future ahead of her".

It was also incredibly heartwarming to observe how he was willing to let Millie have her turn in the spotlight and was reluctant to steal her thunder. When asked what he thought about netizens joking that they would watch the film just for him, he laughed it off: "I think jokes like that — always good, don't mind them at all. Don't know how true they are, but I don't mind them."

"I rolled my eyes a lot at Millie"

The brotherly affection for Millie also probably stemmed from the fact that they had a great relationship offscreen as well. The cast "didn't spend a lot of time hanging out outside of filming" but were blessed with having a "natural" chemistry that translated well to the film.

As for Millie, Henry confessed with a wide grin that having her around was akin to "having a sister".

He added: "She is a lot of fun. We had a lot of laughs together. I rolled my eyes a lot at Millie. The make-up trailer was always a good laugh because she would often talk about reality TV and reality TV is something which she is very, very well-versed in, but I would often switch off when she was talking. And then she would keep on talking at me until she realised that I wasn't listening anymore."

She also tried to get Henry to participate in social media videos, including dances, but The Witcher star "gave a good strong 'no'" to that proposition.

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Rather unfortunate for his fans, considering that when Henry made a social media video of him building his gaming rig from scratch, the collective internet lost their minds.

Fun fact, Henry has been dubbed the "king of geeks" and it's no secret that he's an avid PC gamer. Once, he even admitted in an interview with American television host Conan O'Brien that he was too busy playing World of Warcraft to answer a call to play Superman.

"I had my priorities straight," he said amusedly back then.

Sherlock is the closest you'll get to Henry

In preparation for the role, Henry revealed that he mostly spent time with director Harry Bradbeer discussing who the character is, and how this version of Sherlock Holmes can support Enola and form an emotional connection with her. There was also a mutual consensus on "bringing out more of who I am as a person into this character", Henry said.

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He explained: "It was important for both myself and Harry to delve into who I am as a person emotionally and really reach in and apply that to Sherlock Holmes."

And in filming Enola Holmes, the hunky star admitted to enjoying "a lot more of my true self shining out through the character".

"I actually had such a wonderful experience working with Harry. Harry and I spent many hours sitting down together rehearsing scenes, discussing the 'why' of the scenes, the 'what' of the scenes, the usual actor-director stuff. But Harry also focused a lot on me as a human being.

"He asked me questions about my past, about my childhood, about my hopes and my dreams. And he then applied those kinds of things; and those are the keys he turned during performances, and that was something which I enjoyed enormously."

Enola Holmes premieres on Netflix today (Sept 23).

bryanlim@asiaone.com

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