Henry Cavill: Hot Nerd

Back in The Tudors days, Henry Cavill was a public nerd. He talked about fantasy novels and role-playing games in interviews, and did not try to hide that he is the quintessential nerd who grows up hot.

Then, he became Superman and suddenly, despite playing a King of the Nerds level character, he locked down that part of his persona and became a very boring, hot dishtowel sort of person.

Meghan O’Keefe and I used to lament to each other how Cavill got so boring, and wonder why it happened, when being a Hot Nerd would be a great public persona for a superhero actor.

Now, however, with Superman (mostly) in his rearview and fantasy-novel-based The Witcher happening, Cavill has resurrected his nerdiness for our consumption. The result? The ultimate nerd thirst trap: Henry Cavill building a computer.

Look, I know there was that whole weird thing where he dated a teenager (she was 19) and he wears a pinky ring, but IN THESE TIMES (*extreme doom voice*) can we just enjoy the wholesome spectacle of a hot gamer building a custom machine in front of his floral granny drapes?

It’s really nice! I like the way it lights up and displays the CPU! I’m a laptop girl myself, but I appreciate this gaming machine Cavill built, AND that he knows the power of a hot dude doing things with his hands.

He KNOWS what this looks like, he is totally playing to the camera. And it’s fun! It’s funny! The granny drapes are a great touch! Henry Cavill games in a room that hasn’t been redecorated since 1947, cute. THIS is the personality we missed from Cavill for so long, and I, for one, am glad to see it again.

I have rarely liked the movies Cavill has made, but if he’s going to commit to being a Hot Nerd in the 2020s, I am here for it. (Also, he was nice to my mom once, so I will always have a soft spot for Cavill.) He should really do something about that Babadook in his backyard, though.