The Witcher star Henry Cavill is refusing to downplay rumors that he's involved in Amazon's reported Mass Effect TV adaptation.
Speaking exclusively to TechRadar at The Witcher season 2 press junket, Cavill was keeping his cards close to his chest when asked if he had been cast in the upcoming show, which will be based on BioWare's beloved sci-fi/fantasy gaming franchise.
Earlier this year, Cavill took to his personal Instagram account to post an image – on The Witcher set, no less – that teased one of his next projects. The Justice League and Enola Holmes star's photograph contained a script that had been partially blurred out. Check it out below.
After a lot of research and photo editing, internet sleuths appeared to work out that Cavill was reading a script for an upcoming Mass Effect live-action project. And, with reports suggesting that Amazon Studios is working on a TV adaptation, TechRadar took the opportunity to ask Cavill if he's involved.
Unsurprisingly, though, Cavill gave nothing away about whether he is or not – but he admitted that he'd be very interested in the project if Amazon came calling.
"I can neither confirm nor deny, but of course I’d be interested," he told us. "I’m a huge fan of the Mass Effect games and all depending on the storyline - there are so many factors that go into it - but the IP itself, I think, would be fantastic to be a part of and a lot of fun."
Per a November 2021 report from Deadline, Amazon Studios was nearing a deal to develop a live-action TV show based on the best-selling game series, which is published by Electronic Arts.
Mass Effect fans think that Cavill would be the perfect fit for a male Commander Shepard or, strangely, Urdnot Wrex, based on comments on the game series' Reddit page.
Others, though, aren't so sure about whether Cavill should portray the iconic lead from the sci-fi/fantasy franchise, while former BioWare designer and writer David Gaider has questioned whether a Mass Effect TV show is ultimately necessary.
For starters, ME and DA have a custom protagonist. Meaning said TV show will need to pick whether said protagonist will be male or female. Boom, right off the bat you've just alienated a whole bunch of the built-in fan base who had their hopes up.November 25, 2021
Despite Gaider's reservations, it seems that a Mass Effect TV show is on the way from Amazon, and it'll be interesting to see if Cavill is involved. His response to our question suggests that he is – in our view, he would have denied it outright if he hadn't been cast (or had discussions about starring in it, at least). Hopefully, it won't be too long before we have something more concrete either way.
For more on The Witcher, check out why showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich thinks Netflix's The Witcher: Blood Origin prequel series will "surprise" fans. Alternatively, check out the best Netflix shows, including The Witcher, that you should watch right now.
The Witcher season 2 launches exclusively on Netflix on Friday, December 17.