Henry Cavill goes Solo, Napoleon Solo, in 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E.'

IN THIS weekend's "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.," "Man of Steel" Henry Cavill goes from playing arguably the most well-known character in the world to one who's relatively obscure.

Cavill admits that even he had no knowledge of Agent Napoleon Solo or the TV series on which the film was based (which was broadcast on NBC from Sept. 22, 1964, to Jan. 15, 1968) or even what U.N.C.L.E. stands for (it's United Network Command For Law and Enforcement).

"When I took the role," Cavill said, "Guy [Ritchie, the film's director] had talked to me about it briefly, but he also said, 'We're not going to be [adapting] directly from the TV show. We'll actually be creating our own thing. So, if you want to watch it, by all means go ahead, but we'll be doing our own characters through evolution and discussion and writing and everyone working together.'"

The film is not updated to modern day. It takes place in 1963 at the height of the Cold War. While there is always a danger a film not set in the present day could turn off younger moviegoers, Cavill feels the characters have a timeless, universal appeal.

"Even in its early stages, the characters were so well written and there was a richness to them," Cavill said of not only Solo, but Armie Hammer's Illya Kuryakin, Alicia Vikander's Gaby Teller and Elizabeth Debicki's Victoria Vinciguerra.

"The film itself actually made me enjoy the '60s era as well," Cavill continued. "I mean, we were in Rome and they were shutting the streets off and they had all the background artists and actors in '60s gear. A lot of classic cars went driving by and it felt like you were in a time warp [that was] very, very cool."

Cavill said that part of what made playing Solo so attractive is that in a day and age when everyone from Daniel Craig's James Bond to his own Superman is deadly serious, Napoleon Solo is simply fun.

"Solo is all about enjoying himself in any way he can, especially if he gets to stick it to the man in the process," Cavill laughed. "There's a lot of cool aspects of the character, because he is fun and charming and witty and he's very different from previous characters that I've played - yet not a bad guy or anything - and it was fun on a daily basis."

Warner Brothers moved the film from January 2015 to this summer, which has been the most competitive on record.

"Being moved from a January release date to a mid-August release date is a big deal," he said, "and I think the film stands up to it.

"It's one of my favorite movies that I've been in and I really enjoy the movie. I'm going to see it again, in fact."

Cavill, who is already committed to playing Superman for the next decade, says he would definitely want to play Napoleon Solo in a few sequels. "Very much so. He's a very fun character to play and I would like nothing more than to play Napoleon Solo a few more times in the future."