Men's Health UK/Patrik GiardinoHenry Cavill, who stars in the upcoming thriller The Man From U.N.C.L.E., sat down with Men's Health U.K. to discuss movie roles and his workout routine.
"We knew Batman v Superman was happening immediately afterwards, so we were prepping for that at the same time: doing enough heavy stuff that I was ready to make the switch without putting on muscle," says Cavill. "Plus we had to keep me at a certain weight and make sure I didn't blow up and get fat - which is easy to do when you're under stress and you want to have a drink at the weekend."
Despite the intensity of the workouts, Cavill enjoys training. "There is that aspect of, ‘Oh God, I know how much it hurts.' But I don't mind that so much, " he says. "I like hard work. I really, really like it, because it makes me feel like I've achieved something for the day. It was great to go and train this morning....Doing the right thing releases the right chemicals."
The Man of Steel isn't just a pretty face (and beefy body), he is also a man of strong convictions. "It's pride. I have pride in my work," he notes. "When I'm old, I'm not going to go, ‘I'm so glad I cheated myself my entire life, so glad I got away with it.' I want to die and, in those moments, realise that I still have integrity, and that every time I told my kids and grandkids to work hard, I believed it myself. That's what really matters."
And when it comes to hitting the gym, Superman does not like cheaters. "There's this thing of putting workout quotes on Instagram and Facebook... Just because you've said it, it doesn't mean that you're doing the thing. It's just people bluffing, making themselves look cool by repeating someone who worked really hard. Why don't you just do the thing, and not say it?"
However, the Englishman does have his guilty pleasures, confessing, "I like fish and chips; I like pies; I like Guinness."
The actor is obviously an extraordinarily fit person. He's suave and very handsome. He's also playing a secret agent in his next film. Oh, and he's British. It looks like he has all the ingredients for the perfect successor to Daniel Craig as James Bond.
"The Bond people are wonderful, and I'd like to work with them," he shares. "But it all depends on directors, and scripts, and whether they want me to do it. Plus there's a time factor. Let's say the DC Universe keeps growing: they haven't announced any more standalone Superman movies, but they may well do. That takes a full year out. If The Man From U.N.C.L.E. becomes a franchise, there's that… I'm not too sure when I could fit it in."
The 32-year-old actor attempts to disassociate his character Napoleon Solo from The Man from U.N.C.L.E. from 007, saying, "Solo is not like Bond at all: in our film, he's a thief who gets busted because of a jilted woman who sells him out, and then he's blackmailed into working for the CIA. Solo is brains rather than brawn, or guile rather than strength."
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. hits theatres Aug. 14.