Henry Cavill Says He Prefers 'Human Imagination' to Cinematic Sex Scenes

Superman actor Henry Cavill says he "doesn't understand" sex scenes and is "not a fan" of onscreen skin-on-skin action, preferring to let the imagination, rather than the camera, supply steamy images.

The 40-year-old "Argylle" star offered his thoughts on erotic depictions in cinema while on Matthew Vaughn's "Happy Sad Confused" podcast, Variety reported.

"There are circumstances where a sex scene actually is beneficial to a movie, rather than just the audience," Cavill allowed, "but I think sometimes they're overused these days."

The British thesp, who is famous for his buff looks and body-suit "Superman" costume in DC Extended Universe movies, explained what he meant.

"It's when you have a sense where you're going, 'Is this really necessary or is it just people with less clothing on?'... that's when you start to get more uncomfortable," he said, according to Variety. "...and you're thinking, 'There's not a performance here. There's not a piece which is going to carry through to the rest of the movie.'"

Dispelling any impression of prudery, the superhero star noted that "sex scenes can be great in a movie," but added the caveat that while a filmic interlude of intimacy "can really help with the storytelling," more often it's the case that "the human imagination is going to trump" what's being shown onscreen.

Perhaps to the disappointment of fans, he declared that he's "not a fan of doing them."

Cavill stars in Vaughn's latest, a spy thriller in which a crime novelist inadvertently becomes embroiled in real black ops-type action. But he won't be back in the blue tights and red cape; in late 2022, Cavill announced in a social media post that, in the wake of James Gunn and Peter Safran taking over superhero movies based on DC Comics superheroes, he was being let go as the latest actor to portray earth's greatest hero.

Gunn also took to social media to explain that Cavill would not portray Superman going forward, tweeting, "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."

Still, when it comes to comics and movies derived from them, it's best never to say never; Gunn subsequently posted that "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."

Could recasting Superman be a chance for an LGBTQ+ actor to step into those big red boots? Or could the character himself be reimagined as gay or bi? Such a modernization would not be without precedent. The comics have introduced two sons of Superman, one of whom is bisexual and shares his father's super powers and iconic costume.

In keeping with his lack of interest in onscreen sex scenes, Cavill refrains from posting explicit thirst traps on his Instagram. Even so, he has posted a few hunky pics of himself over the years. Check out a few below.