We all know Henry Cavill. He is Superman. And until recently, he was the Witcher. He is also—seeing as he has to look the part to play the superhero convincingly—a very big guy. So it is understandable if the man comes across as slightly intimidating. However, you only need to look at the actor’s Instagram account to see that may not be the case. More specifically, his Instagram captions.
Now I am admittedly not someone who reads long captions on any platform. My approach to long captions and texts is that meme that says: “I ain’t reading all that. I’m happy for you though. Or sorry that happened.” But Henry Cavill’s captions? I read them religiously. Because that man makes things as mundane as making a brisket on International Men’s Day or installing coolers during a heatwave an entire literary experience, compelling you to read it from start to finish.
Even when he talks about cool things like his work, interviews, co-actors, his partner Natalie Viscuso, and his cute dog Kal (who is an American Akita that “behaves like a puppy half the time and a wise old man the other half”), he does it with so much enthusiasm and reverence that you can't help but love it. It’s like he is genuinely having fun writing them and giving the world a peek into the life of Henry Cavill. You come for the pictures, but you stay for the absolutely incredible Instagram captions.
He gives you so many details. Each caption is like a diary entry. It is a story, a journey, an experience. For example, his post about making a brisket not only shows you a video of what he created, but also explains in vivid detail—right down to the kind of brisket, knife and pellet smoker he used—how he made it. Or when he posted about training for his role as the Witcher. He didn’t need to tell anyone where or how he’s doing it, or when was the last time he went running for however many miles, but he did it anyway.
He is also incredibly funny. Like the time he wrote an entire caption from the point of view of his infamous Mission Impossible mustache, or when he went to a phone launch event in Shanghai and interviewed Scarlett Johansson’s promotional poster to confirm if Superman was better than Captain America.
His best posts, however, come from when he’s geeking about things he enjoys: gaming. Cavill is a huge nerd, and his lengthy caption about his visit to Warhammer World in the UK is proof of that. I’m also a fan of when he posted about the things he cooked during the COVID-19 lockdown by using isolation puns (“piesolation” might be my favorite one).
When he speaks about his work, or the things he’s passionate about, he never fails to give credit to the things he used or the people that inspired it. From the journalists who interview him during press junkets to comic book authors and Warhammer model designers, credit goes where credit is due.
No other celebrity on that platform makes use of captions in the way that Cavill does. No one is this engaging, this enthralling, this authentic and real with it. You hang on to every word that man writes. It is truly a delight. And people online seem to love it as well, as they regularly praise his caption skills on Twitter.
Perhaps the reason why his Instagram captions are so riveting is because it is very rare to see a celebrity use their platform in such an engaging and authentic way. Even when Cavill is promoting something that is clearly a paid sponsorship, he personalizes the caption so that it seems like he genuinely cares about the brand he’s selling.
Ever since social-media use exploded in these last few years, celebrities and famous personalities have been using it to give their fans a glimpse into their daily lives. Many of them use platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok to interact with their followers. While some use Instagram to solely post pictures and let the images speak for themselves, Cavill not only shows his followers what he’s up to, but also, through his words, tells them anecdotes about his life.
By making use of the captions in such a fun, diary-like way, he compels you to care about the things he is talking about. They are a peek into his thoughts. Many celebrities employ captions here and there to talk about something they’re passionate about (or dole out apologies for wrongdoings), but none come off as sincere or as earnestly authentic as Cavill.
You can tell he puts a lot of thought into it. And because he only talks about things he seems to genuinely care about (or at least that’s what it comes off as), his essay length captions become endearing to read. It turns out that he’s quite literary, too!
If Cavill ever decides to make a Substack newsletter, he will definitely have a subscriber in me.
