Sophia Michaels
After bidding goodbye to his roles in DC’s Superman and Netflix’s The Witcher, Henry Cavill is out of temporary retirement and is set to star and executive produce an adaptation of the popular tabletop game Warhammer 40,000.
Amazon Prime Video officially acquired the global rights to the IP from Games Workshop (GAW), according to the Hollywood Reporter, which also includes the Warhammer 40,000 rights across film, TV and more.
This marks the first major acquisition of its kind for Amazon Studios. “Warhammer 40,000 has captured the imagination of fans of all ages, from all walks of life, and all over the world,” said Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon and MGM Studios, in a press release. “We are excited to work with Henry, Vertigo Entertainment, and Games Workshop across our Amazon entertainment businesses on this brilliant, immersive franchise for our global customers to experience for years to come.”
In his own statement, Cavill expressed his fandom for the game. “I have loved Warhammer since I was a boy, making this moment truly special for me. The opportunity to shepherd this cinematic universe from its inception is quite the honour and the responsibility,” said Cavill. “I couldn’t be more grateful for all the hard work put in by Vertigo, Amazon and Games Workshop to make this happen. One step closer to making a nigh-on lifelong dream come true.”
Earlier this week, DC Studios co-head James Gunn announced plans for a new Superman film that will focus on the younger years of the hero. Gunn also shared that Superman veteran Cavill would not be returning.
“In the initial stages, our story will be focusing on an earlier part of Superman’s life, so the character will not be played by Henry Cavill. But we just had a great meeting with Henry and we’re big fans and we talked about a number of exciting possibilities to work together in the future,” Gunn tweeted on Wednesday evening.
