Henry Cavill’s new role as the Man of Steel in the Superman film of the same name has been a long time coming, as the actor reveals his harsh childhood nickname, Fat Cavill.
Cavill sat down with People Magazine to speak about his upcoming role in Man of Steel . When speaking about his childhood, Cavill said he was an “easy target” for bullies at boarding school because of his weight.
“I was fat,” the actor says, “I bawled on the phone to my mom four times a day."
Cavill began to transform his body once he decided to pursue a career on screen. When casting directors showed up at Cavill’s school looking for actors in a film adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo , they picked the young aspiring actor. He lost 21 pounds for the role. Playing Superman also wiped Cavill into shape.
“They'd get me up at the crack of dawn, and we'd go to work in this tiny gym at the bottom of the very cheap motel we were staying in,” Cavill explained of his training regimen during filming. “We'd go for an hour, an hour and a half, and then we'd film all day in 100-degree temperatures."
MTV News reports that this was not Cavill’s first brush with the role. He was reportedly cast as Clark Kent in the 2002 film version of the comic book.
“I was very close to getting the job, and then the director changed and I was no longer part of the plan," Cavill explained. The project reportedly fell through due to the director’s fear of flying and Warner Bros. demand that filming take place in Australia.
Assuming the role of Superman the second time around has permanently dispelled “Fat Cavill,” according to the actor’s Man of Steel co-star Amy Adams.
“It takes a second to adjust, because Henry's just so good-looking," Adams said. "He's dashing with just a hint of danger, and it's kinda great.”
View the trailer for Cavill’s Man of Steel below. The film opens in theater’s June 14.
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