From Superman in the DCEU to Geralt in The Witcher, Henry Cavill has spent a large chunk of his time on screen playing dreamy heroes. He’s become known for exuding good guy energy so much on screen that many fans have questioned if he’s the same way in real life. The good news is yes, he very much is, and Alex Pettyfer’s own wild story confirms it. After what the Magic Mike star went through, Cavill definitely deserves the Man of Steel moniker.
In The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, Cavill and Petteyfer star alongside one another as parts of a secret, trigger-happy group that are assigned to fight back against Nazi forces. Based on just the Ministry trailer alone, it’s obvious this movie is all about three things: bombs, bullets and lots of danger. And from what Pettyfer told ET during a cast interview, the danger got real quickly, and he almost lost his life over an accident while filming. Thankfully, Cavill saved the day with this quick thinking. Here’s what Pettyfer had to say:
He saved me from falling off a boat. I nearly drowned! So I can officially say I’ve been saved by Henry. And I’m very grateful to be on this film with you.
How terrifying! When I first read this, I thought the accident would’ve been something like a gnarly fall, but definitely not a drowning. Even though he didn’t share the circumstances of how the accident happened, I’m assuming that there is some amount of risk that goes into filming a very action-driven movie such as this one. I’m just glad everything turned out well, and there’s no doubt Pettyfer won’t be forgetting about his experience anytime soon.
As the Beastly actor continued, he couldn’t help but show his appreciation for what Cavill did for him and the fact that he’s just a great person all around. Pettyfer mentioned how well the leading man treated cast and crew alike, and brought up a super sweet email he sent before shooting even started. Honestly, I’m just so impressed by Cavill’s character. Pettyfer said:
It was an amazing honor, by the way, to be on this film with you because it’s a learning curve to see how a number one treats everyone in the cast and crew. I got an email two weeks before I started filming from this man saying, ‘I’m excited to collaborate with you.
The kind words didn’t stop there, and the interview turned into a Cavill appreciation fest very quickly by the rest of the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare cast. Crazy Rich Asians star Henry Golding talked about Cavill’s worth ethic, stating that he’s always “first on set and last to leave.” Hero Fiennes Tiffin mentioned that the real life hero has a special ability to “keep everybody up and keep the momentum going,” and that he goes out of his way to ensure people on set feel heard.
From what we’ve seen already, Ungentlemanly Warfare has the possibility of being one of the most chaotic movies on the 2024 release schedule. Based partly on real historical events, it follows Cavill’s character, Gus March-Phillips, and his group of rogues as they use unconventional methods to defeat the fascism that had casted a dark shadow worldwide during WWII. While it’s unclear how much of the madness is fictionalized, its promise to be larger than life is my motivation to see it on screen as soon as I can.
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare hits theaters everywhere on April 19, so it won’t be too long now until we get to see all the top-secret, espionage goodness it has to offer.