The sympathy for Henry Cavill’s Superman exit has already turned into second-hand embarrassment

Henry Cavill must have felt on top of the world just a few short weeks ago when he took to Instagram to not just confirm the worst-kept secret in Hollywood in regards to his “surprise” post-credits appearance in Black Adam, but proudly announce to the world that he was back as the DCU’s full-time Superman.

Elsewhere, Dwayne Johnson was telling anyone and everyone who’d listen that he fought tooth and nail for years to convince Warner Bros. to bring back the exiled Man of Steel, folding him back into continuity and setting up a showdown for the ages between two huge, jacked dudes capable of turning the world to dust as their superpowered alter-egos.

And yet, once James Gunn dropped a bombshell on the fandom yesterday by pushing Cavill out of the franchise altogether, the star was forced into issuing a much more somber statement on social media, and you could almost feel the heartbreak pouring out of every single word.

Once the shock and fury subsided, many took it upon themselves to share their feelings of second-hand embarrassment, with Cavill’s two high-profile Instagram addresses taking place at complete opposite ends of the spectrum.

It’s not a good look for anyone to proudly declare they were back for good, only to be cajoled into the exact opposite less than two months later, especially when the circumstances were entirely out of Cavill’s control. The old DC regime used to get torn to shreds for its indecisiveness, but it looks as though Gunn and co-CEO Peter Safran will be operating from the more ruthless side of the equation.