No, A ThunderCats Movie Isn't Releasing In 2025 - The Henry Cavill Rumors Explained

There have been a lot of rumors about an upcoming ThunderCats movie in 2025 starring Henry Cavill, but unfortunately for fans, rumors are all these announcements are. ThunderCats is a media franchise that currently includes three television shows, two video games, comics, board games, and plenty of action figures. The first TV show, ThunderCats, and the toy line launched simultaneously in 1985 and lasted for four seasons. The series was then rebooted in 2011, and then again in 2020, though it was retitled ThunderCats Roar.

As the name implies, ThunderCats follows the adventures of a group of catlike humanoids who come from outer space after their homeworld is destroyed. Landing on an Earth-like planet called "Third Earth", the ThunderCats construct a lair in their new home and defend the planet from interplanetary intruders. There are plenty of moments in ThunderCats that would be perfect for a live-action adaptation and yet there's never been one. So, when news of an upcoming film reached the internet, fans were ready and willing to jump on board. Unfortunately for them, that "news" was just rumors.

There Is No Live-Action Thundercats Movie Set For 2025

Henry Cavill Is Not Starring In The Adaptation Either

The ThunderCats all jumping up together. — Thundercats Classic

Despite all the fanfare for a live-action ThunderCats movie set to arrive in 2025, there have been no credible sources corroborating any of these rumors. It would be almost unheard of for a live-action IP-driven movie with Henry Cavill starring to go entirely unremarked by anyone in the industry if even a whiff of the film was smelled. The fact that the movie is supposedly set for 2025 just confirms that it isn't coming. A movie that big would need a large marketing role out.

A Fan-Made Trailer Sparked Rumors Of Henry Cavill Starring In A 2025 Film

The Fan Made Trailer Was Made Using AI Art

The rumors for the live-action ThunderCats come from a fan-made trailer by @stryderHD on YouTube, who cobbled together an AI concept trailer with the YouTuber's fan casting of characters in the show. The title, "THUNDERCATS - Teaser Trailer (2025) Henry Cavill, Alexandra Daddario | Live Action Concept" does suggest it's a real trailer if a viewer doesn't read closely enough. Henry Cavill is famous for playing strong characters too, so it is believable that he would be cast as Lion-O.

Other actors inserted into the trailer include Liam Neeson, Alexandra Daddario, Sebastian Stan, Terry Crews, Willem Dafoe, Alan Tudyk, Paul Rudd, Michael Rooker, and Jason Momoa. What these fan trailers often forget is that not everyone in the cast can be an A-lister, budgets would balloon. The AI art in this trailer makes it immediately obvious it's fake, but even if someone had only heard about the trailer, it's a good rule of thumb that a trailer would never be the first time a movie or TV show is revealed to the audience. It's often the last thing.

There Is A Thundercats Movie In Development

Adam Wingard Is Writing The Script For A Live-Action Adaptation

Those hopeful that the ThunderCats 2025 movie rumors were true shouldn't be too disappointed, because Adam Wingard still appears to be set on making his own live-action ThunderCats, just at a later date. The latest news about the project came in March 2024 when Wingard said (via Gizmodo),

"Simon [Barrett] and I are still actively working on the script. We finished our last draft basically right when I was going into production on this movie [Godzilla x Kong] and we just had to put everything on hold. [But] right now we're actively working on it again. So whether that means that's the next thing I do or [not], I'm not sure. But it's definitely one of the top priorities I have right now in terms of working on a script.

While it hasn't been confirmed if Wingard's ThunderCats will be live-action or not, he said in an interview (via Collider),