Cavill says training for Highlander is about to begin "in earnest"
There can be only buff.
Our favorite Witcher, Henry Cavill, is ready to start chopping heads like its 1536 as he starts prepping for his role as Connor MacLeod in the Highlander reboot.
Speaking with various outlets while promoting his upcoming action thriller Argylle, Cavill wouldn’t say much regarding his take on the character originally played by Christopher Lambert, only stating his training has started “in earnest.”
“The training is about to begin in earnest. It'll be a very long training process, and I'm very excited to get into it,” Cavill told Collider. “There's only so much I can tell you at the moment. I want to keep everything under wraps for as long as possible."
Released in 1986, Highlander starred Christopher Lambert, Sean Connery, and Clancy Brown as the unforgettable villain, The Kurgan. The film chronicles a centuries-old war between immortal warriors with the storyline spanning both the past and present-day.
The film wasn’t a success at the box office as it only pulled in $12.8 million internationally based on a budget of $19 million; however, the movie’s release to home video was extremely popular and eventually helped recoup losses. Its popularity inspired four subsequent films, Highlander 2: The Quickening being the absolute worst of the bunch with an extraterrestrial storyline later culled in the Special Edition DVD released in 2004. Other mediums based on the Highlander universe include a novel, anime, and a decent TV series starring British actor Adrian Paul as Duncan MacLeod. At one time, Square Enix was developing a Highlander video game slated for a 2008 release. It was canceled in 2010.
With the Highlander history lesson out of the way, the reboot slated for a 2026 theatrical release, it was rumored Cavill was to star in the Highlander reboot since early last year, but it’s come out that he’s been secretly attached over the last five years. The film was only recently confirmed by John Wick director Chad Stahelski after whispers of the project first surfaced in 2008. Stahelski has since inked a deal with Lionsgate to take charge of the Highlander franchise going forward.
Additional cast members have not been announced, but we’re curious as to who might fill Clancy Brown’s role as The Kurgan. You’d need someone as large as Brown, who is 6’2”, who can also be intimidating. Maybe Dave Bautista? He’s a large fella himself at 6’4”, and can be rather scary. So, he could probably pull it off. That’s just our opinion, though.
In the meantime, Cavill’s take on Connor MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod isn’t the only thing fans can look forward to. He’s also starring in the upcoming Warhammer 40,000 adaptation for Amazon, which Cavill is excited to be part of considering he’s been a huge fan of the tabletop franchise since childhood. But until then, fans of the former Superman and Geralt of Rivia watch him take on the role of the spy Argylle.
Set for a theatrical release in February, the big budget ($200 million!) Argylle also stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Rockwell, John Cena, Bryan Cranston, Catherine O'Hara, Dua Lipa, Ariana DeBose, and Samuel L. Jackson because, as you know, he’s in everything. It was directed by Matthew Vaughn, who also directed Kick Ass and Kingsman: The Secret Service. The cat in the film, Chip, belongs to Vaughn's daughter whom he shares with his wife, model Claudia Schiffer, who co-produced the film.