Henry Cavill Finally Weighs In On Zod's Death In Man Of Steel
2013's "Man of Steel" from director Zack Snyder had a lot of weight on its shoulders when it arrived on the big screen. Aside from carrying on the legacy of the Christopher Reeve "Superman" series, as well as its modern continuation, 2006's "Superman Returns," the Henry Cavill-led feature marked the beginning of the DC Extended Universe. Nevertheless, the muted, somber take on the Superman mythology flew into cinemas with confidence and took in roughly $668 million by the time it departed. However, it didn't necessarily enamor DC fans or critics in the way Warner Bros. likely hoped it would.
Put up against the quippy, colorful Marvel Cinematic Universe and the traditionally hopeful and earnest Superman comics, "Man of Steel" was an entirely different animal. Long gone were the days of triumphant flights over Metropolis and wacky antics at the Daily Planet, replaced instead by dramatic action and extended moments of thought that examined how the Man of Tomorrow fit into the makeup of Earth. As for Superman himself, Cavill's take was a dramatic departure from the source material, especially when it came to his final confrontation with General Zod (Michael Shannon).
Much to the behest of DC Comics die-hards, Superman brutally kills Zod at the tail end of "Man of Steel." Whether or not the scene works has been a debate on the internet since the film was released, and Henry Cavill has finally put in his two cents on the matter. Here's how he feels about the ever-controversial moment.
Killing Zod was a learning experience for Superman
Zod's demise in "Man of Steel" drew the ire of the DC fandom for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, the fact that it happened at all set many people off — citing their belief that Superman shouldn't kill. Also, the fact that he had his neck broken in gruesome fashion wasn't exactly a fitting scene in a movie about DC's resident goody-two-shoes. At the end of the day, though, Superman's options were to either let Zod kill a group of innocent bystanders with his heat vision or kill him outright, and Henry Cavill thinks he made the right call by going with the latter.
"The killing of Zod gave a reason for the character to never kill again," the "Witcher" star told The Hollywood Reporter (via Screen Rant), explaining that it presented Kal-El with a chance to grow as an individual. He knew what he had to do to save multiple people, but he regretted his choice to end Zod's life almost immediately after doing so. He didn't like the way it felt to commit such a horrendous act regardless of the circumstances, hence why he doesn't simply kill Batman (Ben Affleck) in "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice" and voices his distaste for the Dark Knight's heinous treatment of criminals.
Henry Cavill's version of Superman is among the darkest incarnations to date when it comes to cinematic ones, and his decision to murder Zod makes that abundantly clear. However, in the grand scheme of his DCEU story, it's a dark yet vital piece to the puzzle all the same.