Responding to what he termed as "speculation" about his life, actor Henry Cavill has asked social media users to stop "harming people he cares about most", including his girlfriend and television executive Natalie Viscuso.
The 38-year-old actor shared a selfie of him with Natalie, 31, on his Instagram page on Saturday alongside a lengthy caption directed at fans and followers, emphasising that their negative assumptions about his personal and professional partnerships "aren't true".
"Dear fans and followers, I wanted to make a wee community announcement," he began.
"I couldn't help but notice that there has been some social animosity of late. It's becoming increasingly prevalent on my feed. There has been lots of, let's call it speculation for now, about my private life and professional partnerships," Henry said.
The fact that he needed to say something, the actor continued, was a "bad thing". "We are living in an age of social enlightenment. More and more, people are realizing that their views may have been blinkered and that they need to expand them to encompass others."
He did not, however, go into specifics about the speculation he was addressing. "So, to you out there who are expressing your disdain and showing your displeasure through a surprising variety of ways, it's time to stop. I know it can be fun to speculate, to gossip, and to dive into our own personal echo chambers on the internet, but your 'passion' is misplaced, and it causes harm to the people I care about most," he said.
{{/usCountry}}He did not, however, go into specifics about the speculation he was addressing. "So, to you out there who are expressing your disdain and showing your displeasure through a surprising variety of ways, it's time to stop. I know it can be fun to speculate, to gossip, and to dive into our own personal echo chambers on the internet, but your 'passion' is misplaced, and it causes harm to the people I care about most," he said.
{{/usCountry}}Henry urged people to embrace the age of social enlightenment together and move forward with positivity. "I am very happy in love, and in life. I'd be enormously grateful if you were happy with me. If you can't bring yourself to be happy with me, then at the very least try to do yourself proud and be the best version of yourself," the actor ended the post, which had disabled comments.
The actor went public with his relationship with Natalie last month, days after they were spotted on a romantic walk together here.