Kick-Ass director Matthew Vaughn wanted to make a Superman movie with Daredevil's Charlie Cox

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Superman could have been played by Charlie Cox and not Henry Cavill if Matthew Vaughn got his way

(Image credit: Netflix/Marvel)

The most famous example of a Superman that never was is undoubtedly Nicholas Cage, who even went as far as wearing the iconic costume for the scrapped Superman Lives in the '90s. We now have a worthy runner-up in the shape of Daredevil’s Charlie Cox.

Kick-Ass writer Mark Millar says in an interview with The Aspiring Kryptonian (H/T ComicBook.com) that director Matthew Vaughn (who directed Kick-Ass as well as X-Men: First Class) wanted Cox to play Supes when ideas were being kicked around for a new Superman movie pre-Man of Steel and post-2006's Superman Returns.

“We did talk about specifics, like actors,” Millar revealed. “And weirdly, his idea was really interesting, which was Charlie Cox, the guy who played Daredevil."

“Matthew had just worked with Charlie on Stardust a year or two before. He's like, 'There's just something really likable about him.' And he said, 'I know he's not big, and Superman's always big' — Charlie's only about 5'8", 5'9" or something — He says, 'But he looks a bit like the Golden Age Superman, when he's a bit more like a regular person.”

Cox, of course, later found himself under Marvel’s umbrella as The Man Without Fear on the Daredevil Netflix series, but it’s interesting to ponder just how different the comic book landscape would have been if he had been tapped to play Krypton’s most famous son instead of Henry Cavill. Besides, the Cox Cut just sounds... painful.

Bradley Russell
Bradley Russell

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.