The actor reportedly had such an issue with the super suit that he had it altered in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
Henry Cavill played the role of Superman in Zack Snyder’s DCU and has been known for being the defining Superman of the 2010s. The actor made his debut in the role in Snyder’s Man of Steel, which kickstarted the DCU. However, after appearing in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League, he had rare appearances and finally departed from the role after James Gunn rebooted the franchise.
Though Cavill had a short tenure playing Superman, the actor reportedly enjoyed it. He has repeatedly mentioned the privilege of playing such an iconic character and that he loves looking in the mirror and seeing Superman. However, the actor did find one aspect of the Superman suit extremely uncomfortable. Cavill mentioned that there was no fly in his super suit and that he had to remove the entire thing to go for a bathroom break.
Henry Cavill’s Superman Suit Did Not Have a Zipper
Henry Cavill as Superman
Henry Cavill starred as Clark Kent a.k.a Superman in the DCU, beginning with Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel. Cavill had reportedly been hired as the superhero before, when director McG was helming a Superman film. But after the film fell through, director Bryan Singer, who directed Superman Returns, chose to go with Brandon Routh instead.
Henry Cavill has mentioned multiple times about the privilege of being able to play the iconic superhero. The Argylle star, however, did have problems with his Superman suit in the first film, which led him to request a change in subsequent movies. Cavill mentioned that he found it hard to take a bathroom break while he had donned the super suit and had to wait for a while so he could go.
Henry Cavill spoke to E! News about the challenges of wearing the super suit,
“There was no fly. There was no zipper. So it’s just one of those things where you got to wait for the right time.”
A still from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Henry Cavill’s co-star Rusell Crowe, who played his Kryptonian father Jor-El in Man of Steel, also echoed his sentiments. The Australian actor mentioned that it took over twenty-five minutes to get his suit off and go for a bathroom break. However, despite the discomfort, Cavill mentioned that he enjoyed playing the part a lot. He said,
“It’s a Superman suit and as much as it may feel uncomfortable at points, you get over it. You get to play Superman. You get to be wearing Superman’s suit. Every time you turn around and look in the mirror it’s, you are Superman. Those are special moments.”
Henry Cavill mentioned later that he requested the costume designer of Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice to redesign his suit so that it would be easier to get in and out of the suit. He mentioned that he was finally able to pee whenever he chose in the new suit.
Other Actors Who Faced Issues With Their Super Suits
Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique
While super suits look extremely cool and allow for superheroes to have their true identities kept a secret, they are reportedly really uncomfortable to wear while filming. Other than Henry Cavill, many actors have come out to talk about the long hours of waiting while the suit was put on them and the discomfort they faced while donning them all day while filming.
Jennifer Lawrence, who played Mystique in the prequels of the X-Men franchise, mentioned that she had to pee through a funnel while she was in her costume as the suit did not allow for her to sit down and urinate. She mentioned it on a radio show with BBC Radio 1 (via Toronto Sun),
“I have to pee on myself every time I have to go to the bathroom. I don’t have to pee on myself but I have to pee out of a funnel standing up because the people who made the suit are like, ‘She doesn’t go to the bathroom – she’s a girl!’… I can’t sit down so I have to stand and I have to pee out of a funnel, and I just can never get it right.”
Another Fox-Marvel star who had issues in going to the bathroom while in his suit was Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds. He mentioned in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that though his suit got minor upgrades in Deadpool 2, there was still no avenue for the actor to go to the bathroom. He said,
“It was like a soft system update…My shin guards are shinier. I mean f—, who cares? Nothing that allowed me to find my p*nis within 20 minutes when I had to pee. No, nothing like that. God forbid we should just put a normal f—ing zipper in it.”
Other stars such as Andrew Garfield and Tom Holland have expressed their issues with their respective Spider-Man suits, with the common issue being struggling to go to the bathroom.