Henry Cavill’s Warhammer 40K Show Has to Avoid a Major ‘Fascist’ Criticism That Aims to Destroy Space Marine 2

Back in December 2022, it was revealed to us that Henry Cavill had signed on to feature in and produce a TV series based on one of the most iconic franchises of all time, Warhammer 40k, for Amazon Prime Video. The announcement kicked off a massive hype train as fans couldn’t wait to see Games Workshop’s masterpiece on big screens.

Unfortunately, we haven’t heard much about the project. We don’t have a shred of an idea where the story might go or who our heroes will fight again. However, one thing is clear: if the series wants to achieve the same success as the Fallout TV show, it must avoid the “fascist” claims that nearly destroyed Space Marine 2.

Henry Cavill’s Dream Warhammer 40k Show Must Deal With Fascist Space Marines

The Emperor’s Angels, Demi-Dogs, Astartres, they go by many names, but the one that’s known by every soul in the universe and strikes fear into the hearest of the highest when uttered is “Space Marine.” These beings in power armor are a major attraction of Games Workshop’s Warhammer 40k universe.

Space Marines are portrayed by Games Workshop’ as brainwashed soldiers who mindlessly follow the fascist Emperor of Mankind. Sure, it’s fun to see them bashing through enemies, but their fascist ideology has attracted criticism from fans as it makes Space Marines hard to sympathize with and relate to.

While crafting Warhammer 40k: Space Marine 2, developer Saber Interactive knew about this issue from the start. In a recent interview, the game’s director, Oliver Hollis-Leick, stated that the studio decided to soften the mentality of Space Marines and give them more human qualities in order to make them less fascist and appealing to players.

Making Space Marine less authoritarian and nuanced certainly helped the Space Marine sequel gain recognition among fans and played a massive role in its rise to the top of Steam charts.

Let’s hope Henry Cavill and his team can recognize these issues with Space Marines and figure out a way to represent them without drawing in fascist criticism. Adding relatable a and appealing characters can go a long way, as proven by the success of Bethesda’s Fallout TV show.

Where is Henry Cavill’s Dream Project?

It’s been two years since it was revealed that we’re going to get a Warhammer 40k show, but like we’ve said before, there haven’t been any major updates so far. However, Games Workshop recently gave an update about Cavill’s dream project during its annual financial report.

According to Games Workshop, the anticipated series still hasn’t been greenlighted because they are waiting for Amazon to work with them to finalize the creative guidelines.

The company revealed that it granted video-on-demand streaming giant exclusive rights to the Warhammer series and film sets, with an option to get rights in the Warhammer Fantasy universe after the release of the initial production.

Back in December 2023, Games Workshop announced that it would give Amazon a year to settle “creative guidelines” for all the films and television series to be developed.The company stated that it would only proceed if all these guidelines were mutually agreed upon by Amazon and Games Workshop.

This leaves Amazon with just 2 months to make its final decision. Considering that many, including Cavill, have been waiting for the live adaptation of Warhammer 40k, Games Workshop and Amazon wouldn’t want to miss capitalizing on this hype.

With that said, are you excited about the Warhammer 40k show? Let us know in the comments below!