d+ “I Felt Like a Mortal Next to a Titan.” — Ben Affleck Admits Henry Cavill’s Superman Physique Forced Him Into a Brutal 6-Month Gym Transformation on Set.

The ego of an A-list titan is a “formidable” fortress, but even the strongest walls can “crumble” when faced with the impossible. When Ben Affleck first stepped onto the set of Batman v Superman, he arrived as a veteran of the screen, a 6’4″ frame of “seasoned” Hollywood royalty. Yet, the moment he stood beside Henry Cavill, the “illusion” of his own strength “evaporated.”

He didn’t just see a co-star; he saw a “god” carved from granite.

“I felt like a mortal standing next to a titan,” Affleck later confessed, his voice echoing the “shattering” realization that his physical preparation had been “woefully” insufficient. To be Batman is to embody “absolute” human peak, but next to Cavill’s Superman, Affleck feared he would look like a mere “accountant” lost in the shadow of a mountain. The “panic” was not merely professional; it was “visceral.”

The fear of being “swallowed” by Cavill’s muscles triggered a “ferocious” six-month descent into physical “purgatory.”

To bridge the “astronomical” gap between man and Kryptonian, Affleck “shackled” himself to a brutal regimen under trainer Walter Norton Jr. This was not a “superficial” Hollywood pump; it was a “meticulous” reconstruction of the human frame. For fifteen months in total, and six months of “relentless” mass-building, Affleck “excavated” a version of himself that could survive the frame. He “bloated” his weight to 228 pounds, a “monstrous” accumulation of muscle designed to make the Dark Knight look “world-weary” yet “terrifying.”

While Affleck was “scrambling” to ascend the mountain, Henry Cavill was already “reigning” at its peak.

Cavill’s transformation was a “monument” to human endurance. Fueled by a “staggering” 5,000-calorie daily intake, he worked with Mark Twight to reach a “supernatural” level of conditioning. He didn’t just “act” like a hero; he “engineered” himself into one, deadlifting nearly 500 pounds until his veins threatened to “rupture” the suit. This was the “Tailpipe” effect—a state of “suffocating” exertion that left even the most “hardened” athletes on set gasping for air.

The rivalry was not just “scripted”—it was “etched” into their sinews.

Director Zack Snyder “cultivated” this physical tension, knowing that for the battle of the century to feel “authentic,” the weight of the blows had to be “earned.” He didn’t want a suit made of rubber; he wanted a Batman made of “resolve.” Affleck’s 4:00 AM workouts were the “foundations” of a performance that moved from “insecurity” to “dominance.” He “stole” hours of sleep to “invest” them in iron, wide-grip rows, and the “punishing” pursuit of a shoulder-width that could rival a god’s.

The result was a “clash” that transcended the screen.

When the rain-soaked rooftop battle finally “ignited,” the audience didn’t just see two actors; they saw two “forces of nature” colliding. Affleck had successfully “mutated” from a mortal into a “gargoyle” of justice, proving that the only thing more “frightening” than a god is a man who has “tortured” himself to stand in his way.