Henry Cavill's new movie has a license to kill... all of your James Bond 26 hopes. It feels like Daniel Craig has been an outgoing James Bond actor for something like 6 years at this point. Craig strongly suggested he was done with 007 after 2015's Spectre (by which we mean the actor said he'd rather "slash his wrists" than play Bond again - a comment he has since expressed regret over), and this immediately sparked speculation as to who the next Bond actor might be. Daniel Craig ultimately found time for No Time To Die, confirming this really was his last crack of the whip, but that final chapter was delayed significantly due to COVID-19. Even now No Time To Die has released and Daniel Craig has officially hung up his tuxedo, he'll remain 007 until a successor is formally announced.
Throughout that entire period from post-Spectre confusion to Bond's present state of limbo, Henry Cavill has been somewhere near the top of fan wish lists. Rubbing shoulders with fellow favorites Tom Hardy and Idris Elba, many see Cavill as a perfect modern Bond. He's charming, a fantastic actor, a proven franchise draw, and can exude upper-class British-ness without coming across aloof. If only he was handsome, Henry Cavill would be the ideal choice...
We jest, obviously, but there's no denying the DCEU's Superman meets every major requirement for a James Bond lead. Unfortunately, an upcoming project might've just put Cavill out of contention. In March 2022, Apple TV+ released for first image for upcoming movie Argylle, in which Henry Cavill plays the lead. Based on the book of the same name by Elly Conway, Argylle's plot remains shrouded in mystery, as not only does the novel mark Conway's literary debut, but Argylle isn't actually published until September 2022 - despite the movie adaptation already midway through production. We do, however, know Henry Cavill's character is a spy who loses his memory, becomes a famous author, then begins on a quest of revenge as the past comes flooding book. The Bourne Identity with a thesaurus, perhaps.
Argylle is expected to release in late 2022/2023, and Apple is eyeing a full trilogy, the source material for which Elly Conway is currently writing at top speed. Assuming that trilogy goes to plan, James Bond's Eon productions won't necessarily want an actor playing 007 and Argylle simultaneously. Even if the first movie sinks and all talk of a sequel gets brushed under the carpet, does Argylle fall too near Bond 26 for Henry Cavill to be the face of both? Making matters worse, Matthew Vaughn (Argylle director) has confirmed Cavill was cast largely because of his uncanny suitability for James Bond, telling THR in 2021 that he was glad to land the actor before Eon did. Argylle, it seems, won't be very far removed at all from 007.
Hope is not lost entirely. Although Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Timothy Dalton and Daniel Craig didn't play any high-profile spies prior to James Bond, Roger Moore starred in The Saint, and Pierce Brosnan played the spy-adjacent (sort of...) title role in Remington Steele. That proves Eon doesn't demand its 007 actors be virgins to the spy genre. Also, Henry Cavill has already featured in both The Man From UNCLE and Mission: Impossible - Fallout, and that wasn't enough to kill the Bond rumors, so what's one more spy role between friends?
Argylle doesn't automatically put a bullet through Henry Cavill's chances of playing James Bond, then, but it certainly doesn't do him any favors either. Eon will, understandably, want at least some air of exclusivity to their next 007, and Cavill playing a Bond-esque figure in the Argylle franchise would certainly take some shine away from Bond 26 if he were cast as Daniel Craig's replacement too. You can never say never (again) when it comes to James Bond, but Tom Hardy and Idris Elba will be fancying their chances now Henry Cavill has committed to Argylle.